DOROTHY HEIGHT (3/24/1912 - 4/20/2010)
The "Godmother of Civil Rights," Dorothy Height will be eulogized by President Barack Obama at the National Cathedral, Thursday. Height, 98, died of natural causes on April 20 at the Howard University Hospital a week ago.
Beneath the beautiful hats she wore Height was an immutable voice for freedom an equality.
She was the leading female voice behind The Civil Rights Movement, who literally sat a few feet behind Dr. Martin Luther King when he gave the I Have A Dream speech at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963.
Height was the President Emerita of the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW). After 40 years of leading the organization she became the chairwoman in 1997 and so remained until her passing.
At the time, according to an AP obituary, the iconic freedom fighter said, "I hope not to work this hard all the rest of my life. But whether it is the council, whether it is somewhere else, for the rest of my life, I will be working for equality, for justice, to eliminate racism, to build a better life for our families and our children."
Height received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994 from President Bill Clinton and the the Congressional Gold Medal in 2004, two of the nations highest honors.
Former Secretary of Labor, and close family friend, Alexis Herman is overseeing funeral arrangements to be held over 3 days in multiple locations beginning today:
Tuesday, April 27
6:00 – 10:00 p.m. — Dr. Height will lie in repose at the NCNW Dorothy I. Height building for a public viewing.
Wednesday, April 28
2:00 p.m. — The Delta Sigma Theta Sorority will conduct a public Omega Omega Service at Howard University. Dr. Height served as national president of the sorority in 1947. Sorors are expected to wear uninterrupted black.
7:00 p.m. — A “Community Celebration of Life” memorial will be held at Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. The memorial is open to the public.
Thursday, April 29
10:00 a.m. — A funeral service will be conducted at Washington National Cathedral and is open to the public. The burial service will follow at Fort Lincoln Cemetery in Maryland.
Height, was an active speaker well into her twilight years as she is shown in the photos on this page accepting a special award at the African American Family Reunion event in DC in 2008. (Photos by Mona Austin)