Marian Wright Edelman
Encyclopedia
Marian Wright Edelman is an American
activist
for the rights of children
. She is president and founder of the Children's Defense Fund
.
She attended Marlboro Training High School there, and went on to Spelman College
and traveled the world on a Merrill scholarship and studied in the Soviet Union as a Lisle fellow. She became involved in the Civil Rights Movement, and after being arrested for her activism, she decided to study law and enrolled at Yale Law School
J.D. 1963.
woman admitted in the Mississippi Bar when she began practicing law out of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.'s Mississippi office. During her time in Mississippi, she worked on racial justice issues connected with the civil rights movement and represented activists throughout the Mississippi Freedom Summer of 1964. She also helped get a Head Start program established in her community.
Edelman moved in 1968 to Washington, D.C. where she continued her work and contributed to the organizing of the Poor People's Campaign
of Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
. She founded the Washington Research Project, a public interest law firm and also became interested in issues related to childhood development and poverty-stricken
children.
In 1973, she founded the Children's Defense Fund as a voice for poor, minority and disabled children. The organization has served as an advocacy and research center for children's issues, documenting the problems and possible solutions to children in need. To keep the agency independent, she saw that it was financed entirely with private funds.
As founder, leader and principal spokesperson for the CDF, Mrs. Edelman worked to persuade Congress
to overhaul foster care, support adoption, improve child care and protect children who are disabled, homeless, abused or neglected. A philosophy of service absorbed during her childhood under-girds all her efforts. As she expresses it, “If you don’t like the way the world is, you have an obligation to change it. Just do it one step at a time.”
She continues to advocate youth pregnancy prevention, child-care funding, prenatal care, greater parental responsibility in teaching values and curtailing children’s exposure to the barrage of violent images transmitted by mass media.
Edelman serves on the board of the New York City based Robin Hood Foundation
, a charitable organization dedicated to the elimination of poverty.
of Mississippi's poverty-ridden Delta
slums, that she met Peter Edelman
, an assistant to Kennedy. They married on July 14, 1968. Edelman and her husband, a Georgetown
law professor, have three sons, Joshua, Jonah
, and Ezra
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
activist
Activism
Activism consists of intentional efforts to bring about social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing...
for the rights of children
Children's rights
Children's rights are the human rights of children with particular attention to the rights of special protection and care afforded to the young, including their right to association with both biological parents, human identity as well as the basic needs for food, universal state-paid education,...
. She is president and founder of the Children's Defense Fund
Children's Defense Fund
The Children's Defense Fund is an American child advocacy and research group, founded in 1973 by Marian Wright Edelman. Its motto Leave No Child Behind reflects its mission to advocate on behalf of children...
.
Early years
In 1953, her father died when she was 14, urging in his last words, "Don't let anything get in the way of your education."She attended Marlboro Training High School there, and went on to Spelman College
Spelman College
Spelman College is a four-year liberal arts women's college located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The college is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman was the first historically black female...
and traveled the world on a Merrill scholarship and studied in the Soviet Union as a Lisle fellow. She became involved in the Civil Rights Movement, and after being arrested for her activism, she decided to study law and enrolled at Yale Law School
Yale Law School
Yale Law School, or YLS, is the law school of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Established in 1824, it offers the J.D., LL.M., J.S.D. and M.S.L. degrees in law. It also hosts visiting scholars, visiting researchers and a number of legal research centers...
J.D. 1963.
Activism
Edelman was the first African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
woman admitted in the Mississippi Bar when she began practicing law out of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.'s Mississippi office. During her time in Mississippi, she worked on racial justice issues connected with the civil rights movement and represented activists throughout the Mississippi Freedom Summer of 1964. She also helped get a Head Start program established in her community.
Edelman moved in 1968 to Washington, D.C. where she continued her work and contributed to the organizing of the Poor People's Campaign
Poor People's Campaign
Organized by Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the Poor People's Campaign addressed the issues of economic justice and housing for the poor in the United States King said, “We believe the highest patriotism demands the ending of the war and the opening of a...
of Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference is an African-American civil rights organization. SCLC was closely associated with its first president, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr...
. She founded the Washington Research Project, a public interest law firm and also became interested in issues related to childhood development and poverty-stricken
Poverty
Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
children.
In 1973, she founded the Children's Defense Fund as a voice for poor, minority and disabled children. The organization has served as an advocacy and research center for children's issues, documenting the problems and possible solutions to children in need. To keep the agency independent, she saw that it was financed entirely with private funds.
As founder, leader and principal spokesperson for the CDF, Mrs. Edelman worked to persuade Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
to overhaul foster care, support adoption, improve child care and protect children who are disabled, homeless, abused or neglected. A philosophy of service absorbed during her childhood under-girds all her efforts. As she expresses it, “If you don’t like the way the world is, you have an obligation to change it. Just do it one step at a time.”
She continues to advocate youth pregnancy prevention, child-care funding, prenatal care, greater parental responsibility in teaching values and curtailing children’s exposure to the barrage of violent images transmitted by mass media.
Edelman serves on the board of the New York City based Robin Hood Foundation
Robin Hood Foundation
The Robin Hood Foundation is a charitable organization, which attempts to alleviate problems caused by poverty in New York, United States.-History:Founded in 1988, Robin Hood was the brainchild of hedge fund manager Paul Tudor Jones...
, a charitable organization dedicated to the elimination of poverty.
Personal life
It was in 1967, during a tour by Robert Kennedy and Joseph ClarkJoseph S. Clark
Joseph Sill Clark, Jr. was a U.S. lawyer and Democratic Party politician in the mid-20th century. He served as the mayor of Philadelphia from 1952 until 1956, and as a United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1957 until 1969...
of Mississippi's poverty-ridden Delta
Mississippi Delta
The Mississippi Delta is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi that lies between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The region has been called "The Most Southern Place on Earth" because of its unique racial, cultural, and economic history...
slums, that she met Peter Edelman
Peter Edelman
Peter B. Edelman is a lawyer, policy maker, and law professor at Georgetown University Law Center, specializing in the fields of poverty, welfare, juvenile justice, and constitutional law. Edelman grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His father worked as a lawyer and his mother worked as a home-maker...
, an assistant to Kennedy. They married on July 14, 1968. Edelman and her husband, a Georgetown
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
law professor, have three sons, Joshua, Jonah
Jonah Edelman
Jonah Martin Edelman is an American advocate for public education. He is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Stand for Children, a national American education advocacy organization based in Portland, Oregon and Waltham, Massachusetts, with affiliates in nine states...
, and Ezra
Ezra Edelman
Ezra Edelman is a made-for-television producer and director, best known as the director of the 2010 HBO Sports documentary Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals and the Emmy Award-winning Brooklyn Dodgers: Ghosts of Flatbush.-External links:...
.
Honors and awards
- 1985 MacArthur Fellowship
- 1985 Barnard Medal of Distinction
- 1986 Doctor of Laws, honoris causa Bates CollegeBates CollegeBates College is a highly selective, private liberal arts college located in Lewiston, Maine, in the United States. and was most recently ranked 21st in the nation in the 2011 US News Best Liberal Arts Colleges rankings. The college was founded in 1855 by abolitionists...
- 1988 Albert Schweitzer Prize for HumanitarianismAlbert Schweitzer Prize for HumanitarianismThe Albert Schweitzer Prize for Humanitarianism is a prize given to people who made exemplary contributions to humanity and the environment. The goal of the prize is to advance the cause of humanitarianism. The prize was established in 1986 by Albert Toepfer, an international grain merchant from...
- 1992 Boy Scouts of AmericaBoy Scouts of AmericaThe Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
, Silver Buffalo AwardSilver Buffalo AwardThe Silver Buffalo Award is the national-level distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America. It is presented for noteworthy and extraordinary service to youth on a national basis, either as part of, or independent of the Scouting program... - 1995 Community of Christ International Peace AwardCommunity of Christ International Peace AwardThe Community of Christ International Peace Award was established to honor and bring attention to the work of peacemaking and peacemakers in the world...
- 1996 The 2nd Annual Heinz AwardHeinz AwardThe Heinz Award is an award currently given annually to ten honorees by the Heinz Family Foundation. The Heinz Awards recognize outstanding individuals for their contributions in the five areas of: Arts and Humanities, the Environment, the Human Condition, Public Policy, and Technology, the Economy...
in the Human Condition - 2000 Presidential Medal of FreedomPresidential Medal of FreedomThe Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award bestowed by the President of the United States and is—along with thecomparable Congressional Gold Medal bestowed by an act of U.S. Congress—the highest civilian award in the United States...
- A Marlboro County library named in honor of Edelman, opened on February 22, 2010, in her hometown of Bennettsville, South Carolina.
- 2011 Rathbun Visiting Fellow at Stanford University