Open wide the freedom gates : a memoir

cover image

Where to find it

Davis Library (5th floor)

Call Number
E185.97.H444 A3 2003
Status
Available

Stone Center Library

Call Number
E185.97.H444 A3 2003 c. 3
Status
Available

Undergrad Library

Call Number
E185.97.H444 A3 2003 c. 2
Status
Available

Summary

Dorothy Height marched at civil rights rallies, sat through tense White House meetings, and witnessed every major victory in the struggle for racial equality. Yet as the sole woman among powerful, charismatic men, someone whose personal ambition was secondary to her passion for her cause, she has received little mainstream recognition--until now. In her memoir, Dr. Height, now ninety-one, reflects on a life of service and leadership. We witness her childhood encounters with racism and the thrill of New York college life during the Harlem Renaissance. We see her protest against lynchings. We sit with her onstage as Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his "I Have a Dream" speech. We meet people she knew intimately throughout the decades: W.E.B. DuBois, Marcus Garvey, Eleanor Roosevelt, Mary McLeod Bethune, Adam Clayton Powell Sr., Langston Hughes, and many others. And we watch as she leads the National Council of Negro Women for forty-one years, her diplomatic counsel sought by U.S. Presidents from Eisenhower to Clinton.

After the fierce battles of the 1960s, Dr. Height concentrates on troubled black communities, on issues like rural poverty, teen pregnancy and black family values. In 1994, her efforts are officially recognized. Along with Rosa Parks, she receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.

Contents

  • Foreword p. IX Maya Angelou
  • 1 A "Little Old Lady" p. 1
  • 2 Keeping the Faith p. 13
  • 3 Coming of Age in Harlem p. 27
  • 4 "Me Culled Too" p. 43
  • 5 Building a New World p. 59
  • 6 Turning Points p. 78
  • 7 Wartime Washington p. 95
  • 8 Step by Step p. 110
  • 9 The Land of the Free p. 132
  • 10 "Women Are the Shock Absorbers" p. 155
  • 11 Behind the "Cotton Curtain" p. 167
  • 12 Mississippi, Crucible of Change p. 180
  • 13 Living up to Our Promise p. 200
  • 14 Citizen of the World p. 219
  • 15 Making Common Cause p. 234
  • 16 A Place in the Sisterhood p. 249
  • 17 Building a Legacy p. 258
  • 18 Home at Last p. 271
  • 19 A Family of Friends p. 288
  • 20 "Temples Still Undone" p. 294
  • Acknowledgments p. 299
  • Photo Credits p. 303
  • Index p. 305

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