Jane Addams: Philanthropist, Feminist, and Peace Advocate

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Jane Addams was born in Cedarville, Illinois. She was a philanthropist, women’s rights activist, and an anti-war activist. Jane Addams cofounded one of the first settlements in the United States, the Hull house in Chicago in 1889, and was named a co-winner of the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize. Addams also served as the first female president of the National Conference of Social Work, established the National Federation of Settlements, and served as president of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.
Addams was known primarily for her work as a social reformer, pacifist and feminist during the late 19th century. In the 1880’s Addams struggled to find her place in the world. Struggling with health problems at an early age, she graduated …show more content…

Truth was born into slavery in Swartekill, New York, but fled with her infant daughter to freedom in 1826. Her other daughter and son stayed behind. After the escape, Truth found out that her son Peter had been illegally sold to a man in Alabama. She took the issue to court and eventually secured Peter’s return from the South. The case was one of the first in which a black woman effectively challenged a white man in the United States court. During the Civil War, Truth marched the roads of Michigan collecting food and clothing for black regiments. She lent her distinctive skills to the women’s suffrage movement and started a petition drive to find land for the freed people. Truth’s most significant legacy is the tone and substance of her language. As an old woman she confused the country providing liberation with an expressive epigraph: “Give ‘em land and an outset, and hab teachers learn ‘em to read. Den they can be somebody.” Few modern activists have better described politicians or the purpose of a petition drive than Truth did: “Send tons of paper down to Washington for them spouters to chaw on.” And when she was viciously knocked off of Washington’s separated streetcars, she criticized racism: “It is hard for the old slaveholding spirit to die, but die it must.” She herself died of old age and ulcerated legs in 1883. Truth died at her home in Battle Creek, Michigan in 1883. Truth continued to speak …show more content…

She overcame the hardships of being blind and deaf to become one of the 20th century’s most important humanitarians, as well as co-founder of the ACLU. Keller contracted an infection called brain fever. She had lost both her sight and hearing. After college, she set out to learn more about the world and how she could help progress the lives of others. She became well known and a speaker by sharing her experiences with audiences and working on behalf of others living with disabilities. She testified before congress, powerfully supporting to advance welfare of blind people. In 1920, she aided in founding the American Civil Liberties Union. During her notable life, Keller stood as an influential example of how willpower, hard work, and imagination can allow an individual to

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