biography
| name: |
Terrell, Mary Church
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| sex:
| female
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| lived:
| (1863–1954)
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| biography:
| Civil-rights activist, born in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. The daughter of former slaves, her life spanned the period from the Emancipation Proclamation to the Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education that school segregation was illegal. After graduating from Oberlin College (1884), she taught for several years, then moved to Europe seeking greater freedom both as an African-American and as a woman. Returning to the USA after two years, she founded the National Association of Coloured Women (NACW) in 1896, and, as its president, spearheaded attempts to aid mothers and children. After decades of quiet service, in the 1950s she led the fight to desegregate restaurants in Washington, DC, picketing with the aid of a cane. On 8 June 1953, the district court declared Washington's segregated restaurants illegal. |
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