http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/l...-Icon-Dorothy-Height-Dies-at-98-91581204.html
Dorothy Height, an icon of the Civil Rights Movement and a longtime leader in the pursuit of equal rights for women, has died at the age of 98.
Height had been in the intensive care unit at Howard University Hospital since March 18.
Height has been a part of many of the nation's historic civil rights events. She stood beside Dr. Martin Luther King at the Lincoln Memorial as he gave his famous "I have a dream" speech. She had said she had directly known every American president since Franklin Delano Roosevelt. And she was on the stage in Washington for President Barack Obama's inauguration.
"I never thought I would live to see this," Height told the New York Times in regards to the inauguration of a black president. "This is real recognition that civil rights was not just what Dr. King dreamed. But it took a lot of people a lot of work to make this happen, and they feel part of it."
Height was born in 1912 in Richmond, Va. At the age of 4 she moved with her family to Rankin, Pa., where she spent most of her childhood.
With her outstanding school record and her many awards for her exceptional oratory skills, she landed a scholarship that took her to New York University. She earned both bachelors and masters degrees in psychology in just four years.
Her work career began as a case worker with the New York City Welfare Department. But she soon became a leader in the struggle for equal rights for both women and African-Americans. Her passionate commitment for the fight for equality led her to work for the desegregation of the Armed Forces, the reform of the criminal justice system, and for access to public accomodations for all people.
For more than 40 years Height served as the president of the National Council of Negro Women. She received 36 honorary doctorate degrees from some of the country's most outstanding colleges and universities. One of those degrees came from Barnard College in New York where, many years earlier, she was turned away as a freshman because the school had filled its quota of only two black students per academic year.
She is one of a select few Americans to win both the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal -- the highest civilian and most distinguished award presented by Congress.
Dorothy Height, an icon of the Civil Rights Movement and a longtime leader in the pursuit of equal rights for women, has died at the age of 98.
Height had been in the intensive care unit at Howard University Hospital since March 18.
Height has been a part of many of the nation's historic civil rights events. She stood beside Dr. Martin Luther King at the Lincoln Memorial as he gave his famous "I have a dream" speech. She had said she had directly known every American president since Franklin Delano Roosevelt. And she was on the stage in Washington for President Barack Obama's inauguration.
"I never thought I would live to see this," Height told the New York Times in regards to the inauguration of a black president. "This is real recognition that civil rights was not just what Dr. King dreamed. But it took a lot of people a lot of work to make this happen, and they feel part of it."
Height was born in 1912 in Richmond, Va. At the age of 4 she moved with her family to Rankin, Pa., where she spent most of her childhood.
With her outstanding school record and her many awards for her exceptional oratory skills, she landed a scholarship that took her to New York University. She earned both bachelors and masters degrees in psychology in just four years.
Her work career began as a case worker with the New York City Welfare Department. But she soon became a leader in the struggle for equal rights for both women and African-Americans. Her passionate commitment for the fight for equality led her to work for the desegregation of the Armed Forces, the reform of the criminal justice system, and for access to public accomodations for all people.
For more than 40 years Height served as the president of the National Council of Negro Women. She received 36 honorary doctorate degrees from some of the country's most outstanding colleges and universities. One of those degrees came from Barnard College in New York where, many years earlier, she was turned away as a freshman because the school had filled its quota of only two black students per academic year.
She is one of a select few Americans to win both the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal -- the highest civilian and most distinguished award presented by Congress.
