Delwin M. Anderson (1916 – 2007 ) – Director of Social Work Services, U.S. Veterans Administration and NASW Social Work Pioneer Delwin M. (Del) Anderson was director of the Social Work Service of the Department of Medicine and Surgery in the U.S. Veterans Administration (VA) from 1964 to 1974. During this time he was…
Continue Reading »Grace Abbott (1878 – 1939) – Social Work Pioneer, Reformer, Hull House Resident and Chief of the Children’s Bureau. Article by John Sorensen, Founding Director of the Abbott Sisters Project
Continue Reading »Jacob Riis (May 3, 1849 – May 26, 1914): Journalist, Photographer, Social Reformer By Catherine A. Paul “‘Are you not looking too much to the material condition of these people,’ said a good minister to me after a lecture in a Harlem church last winter, ‘and forgetting the inner man?’ I told him, ‘No! For you…
Continue Reading »Dorothea Lange was one of the leading documentary photographers of the Depression and arguably the most influential. Some of her pictures were reproduced so repeatedly and widely that they became commonly understood symbols of the human suffering caused by the economic disaster. At the same time her work functioned to create popular support for New Deal programs.
Continue Reading »In 1963, Dr. King led a massive civil rights campaign in Birmingham, Ala., and organized drives for black voter registration, desegregation, and better education and housing throughout the South. During these nonviolent campaigns he was arrested several times, generating newspaper headlines throughout the world. In June, President John F. Kennedy reacted to the Birmingham protests by submitting broad civil rights legislation to Congress. Dr. King was the final speaker at the historic March on Washington DC (August 28, 1963), where he delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. In June the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed. Also in 1964, Dr. King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Continue Reading »Despite her initial intent to focus on her social activities as First Lady, political issues soon became a central part of the weekly briefings. When some women reporters assigned to ER tried to caution her to speak off the record, she responded that she knew some of her statements would “cause unfavorable comment in some quarters . . . but I am making these statements on purpose to arouse controversy and thereby get the topics talked about.”
Continue Reading »Du Bois was a founding member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) — the largest and oldest civil rights organization in America. Throughout his life Du Bois fought discrimination and racism. He made significant contributions to debates about race, politics, and history in the United States in the first half of the 20th century, primarily through his writing and impassioned speaking on race relations.
Continue Reading »Florence Kelley (1859 – 1932): Social Reformer, Child Welfare Advocate, Socialist and Pacifist Introduction: Florence Kelley was a social reformer and political activist who defended the rights of working women and children. She served as the first general secretary of the National Consumers League and helped form the National Association for the Advancement of…
Continue Reading »“Jane Addams (1860 – 1935) – Founder of Hull-House, Social Reformer, Women’s Advocate and Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize,” by John E. Hansan, Ph.D.
Continue Reading »Edith Abbott (1876-1957) – Social Reformer, Author, Administrator and Educator by John Sorensen, Founding Director of the Abbott Sisters Project Introduction Edith Abbott was born in Grand Island, Nebraska to active, civic minded parents. Her mother was an abolitionist and women’s suffrage leader and her father was the first Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska. Her…
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