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{{Short description|American activist, NAACP founder (1865–1951)}}

'''Mary White Ovington''' (born [[April 11]], [[1865]] in [[Brooklyn, New York]] - [[1951]]) was a [[civil rights]] leader.

{{Infobox officeholder

|name = Mary White Ovington

|image = Mary White Ovington.jpg

|caption = Ovington, {{circa|1890–1900}}

|office = Chair of the [[National Association for the Advancement of Colored People]]

|term_start = 1919

|term_end = 1934

|predecessor = [[Joel Elias Spingarn]]

|successor = [[Louis T. Wright]]

|office1 = Executive Secretary of the [[NAACP]]

|term1 = 1916

|predecessor1 = [[May Childs Nerney]]

|successor1 = [[Royal Freeman Nash]]

|term_start2 = 1911

|term_end2 = 1912

|predecessor2 = [[Frances Blascoer]]

|successor2 = [[May Childs Nerney]]

|birth_name = Mary White Ovington

|birth_date = {{birth date|1865|4|11}}

|birth_place = [[Brooklyn]], [[New York (state)|New York]], U.S.

|death_date = {{death date and age|1951|7|15|1865|4|11}}

|death_place = [[Newton Highlands, Massachusetts]], U.S.

|education = [[Harvard University]]

}}

'''Mary White Ovington''' (April 11, 1865 – July 15, 1951) was an American [[socialist]], [[suffragist]], [[journalist]], and co-founder of the [[NAACP|National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)]].<ref>Ralph Luker, ''Black and White Sat Down Together: The Reminiscences of an NAACP Founder.'' New York: The Feminist Press at CUNY, 1996. Hardcover: {{ISBN|1-55861-099-5}}.</ref>

==Biography==

Mary White Ovington was born April 11, 1865, in [[Brooklyn]], [[New York City]]. Her grandmother attended the Connecticut congregation of [[Samuel Joseph May]]. Her parents, members of the [[American Unitarian Association|Unitarian Church]] were supporters of [[women's rights]] and had been involved in the [[abolitionism in the United States|anti-slavery]] movement. Educated at [[Packer Collegiate Institute]] and [[Radcliffe College]] of [[Harvard University]], Ovington became involved in the campaign for civil rights in [[1890]] after hearing [[Frederick Douglass]] speak in a Brooklyn church and a 1903 speech by [[Booker T. Washington]] at the Social Reform Club.

In 1894, Ovington met [[1895Ida B. Wells]], while taking Christmas presents to Ida's sister's children. Mary was so appalled by their living conditions that she started working with Wells to force the city to update the tenements{{citation needed|date=March 2020}}. In 1895, she helped found the [[Greenpoint Settlement]] in Brooklyn. Appointed head of the project the following year, Ovington remained until [[1904]], when she was appointed a fellow of the [[Greenwich House Committee on Social Investigations]]. Over the next five years, she studied employment and housing problems in black [[Manhattan]]. During her investigations, she met [[WilliamW. E. B. Du Bois]], an [[African American]] from [[Harvard University]], and she was introduced to the founding members of the [[Niagara Movement]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.biography.com/people/mary-white-ovington-9430955|title=Mary White Ovington|website=Biography|language=en-us|access-date=2018-05-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180323103102/https://www.biography.com/people/mary-white-ovington-9430955|archive-date=2018-03-23|url-status=dead}}</ref>

InfluencedIn by the ideas of [[William Morris]]1905, Ovington joined the [[United States Socialist Party|Socialist Party]]of in [[1905America]], whereinfluenced sheby metthe peopleideas such asof [[DanielWilliam De LeonMorris]],. There she met [[AsaA. Philip Randolph]], [[Floyd Dell]], [[Max Eastman]] and [[Jack London]], who argued that racial problems were as much a matter of class as of race. SheOvington wrote for radical journals and newspapers such as, ''[[The Masses]]'', ''[[New York Evening Post]]'', and the ''[[TheNew York Call]]''. She also worked with [[Ray Stannard Baker]] and influenced the content of his 1908 book, ''[[Following the Color Line]]'' ([[1908]]).

InOn September [[3, 1908]], she read an article written by Socialist [[William English Walling]], entitled ''"Race War in the North", in '',The thatIndependent''. Walling described a massive [[Mass racial violence in the atrocitiesUnited beingStates|race carriedriot]] outdirected againstat [[African-American|black]] Americansresidents in [[Springfield Race Riot of 1908|Springfield, Illinois]], the hometown of [[Abraham Lincoln]], that led to seven deaths, the destruction of 40 homes and 24 businesses, and 107 indictments against rioters. Walling ended the article by calling for a powerful body of citizens to come to theirthe aid of blacks. Ovington responded to the article by writing to Walling and meeting at ahis meetingapartment in [[New York]] theyCity, decidedalong to form thewith [[Nationalsocial Association for the Advancement of Coloured Peopleworker]] (NAACP)Dr. The[[Henry firstMoskowitz meeting(civil ofrights theleader)|Henry organization was held on [[February 12]], [[1909Moskowitz]]. EarlyThe membersgroup includeddecided [[Josephineto Ruffin]],launch [[Marya Talbert]],campaign [[Maryby Churchissuing Terrell]],a [[Inezcall Milholland]],for [[Janea Addams]],national [[Georgeconference Henryon White]],the [[Williamcivil Duand Bois]],political [[Charlesrights Edward Russell]],of [[JohnAfrican DeweyAmericans]], [[Charleson Darrow]],the [[Lincolncentennial Steffens]],of [[RayLincoln's Stannard Baker]]birthday, [[FannyFebruary Garrison Villard]]12, [[Oswald1909.<ref Garrison Villard]] and [[Ida Wells-Barnett]].name=":0" />

The [[National Negro Committee]] held its first meeting in New York on May 31 and June 1, 1909.<ref name=":0" /> By May 1910, the National Negro Committee and attendants, at its second conference, organized a permanent body known as the [[National Association for the Advancement of Colored People]] (NAACP). Ovington was appointed as its executive secretary. Early members included [[Josephine Ruffin]], [[Mary Talbert]], [[Mary Church Terrell]], [[Inez Milholland]], [[Jane Addams]], [[George Henry White]], [[W. E. B. Du Bois]], [[Charles Edward Russell]], [[John Dewey]], [[Charles Darrow]], [[Lincoln Steffens]], [[Ray Stannard Baker]], [[Fanny Garrison Villard]], [[Oswald Garrison Villard]], and [[Ida B. Wells|Ida B. Wells-Barnett]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/eras/civil-war-reconstruction/ovington-mary-white/|title=Ovington, Mary White - Social Welfare History Project|date=2014-04-27|work=Social Welfare History Project|access-date=2018-05-07|language=en-US}}</ref> The following year, Ovington attended the [[Universal Races Congress]] in [[London]]. [[Richetta Randolph Wallace]], who had worked with Ovington as a secretary for several years, was hired as the first office staff at NAACP headquarters in 1912.<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/28683678/richetta_randolph_wallace_1943/ "NAACP Honors Richetta Randolph"], ''New York Age'' (January 9, 1943): 4. via [[Newspapers.com]].</ref>

In [[1910]] she was appointed as executive secretary of the [[NAACP]]. The following year she attended the [[Universal Races Congress]] in [[London]]. Ovington remained active in the struggle for [[women's suffrage]] and as a [[pacifist]] opposed [[USA|America]]'s involvement in the [[First World War]]. During the war Ovington supported [[Asa Philip Randolph]] and his magazine, ''[[The Messenger]]'', which campaigned for black civil rights.

Ovington remained active in the struggle for [[women's suffrage]]. In 1921, she wrote to [[Alice Paul]] asking that a black woman be invited to the [[National Woman's Party]] celebration of the passing of the nineteenth amendment.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://documents.alexanderstreet.com/d/1000683063|access-date=March 1, 2020|title=Letter from Mary White Ovington to Alice Paul|publisher=Alexander Street}}</ref> Ovington was also a [[pacifist]] who opposed the United States's involvement in the [[World War I|First World War]]. During the war Ovington supported [[A. Philip Randolph]] and his magazine ''The Messenger'', which campaigned for black civil rights.<ref name=":1" />

After the war Ovington served the [[National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People]] as board member, executive secretary and chairman. The NAACP fought a long legal battle against [[racial segregation|segregation]] and [[racial discrimination]] in housing, education, employment, voting and transportation. They appealed to the [[United States Supreme Court|Supreme Court]] to rule that several laws passed by [[U.S. southern states|southern states]] were unconstitutional and won three important judgments between [[1915]]-[[1923]] concerning voting rights and housing.

[[File:W.E.B. DuBois Mary White Ovington.jpg|thumb|left|Mary White Ovington's<br />plaque on the<br />National Volunteer Pathway]]

The NAACP was criticised by some members of the [[African American]] community. [[Booker T. Washington]] opposed the group because it proposed an outspoken condemnation of racist policies in contrast to his policy of quiet diplomacy behind the scenes. Members of the organization were physically attacked by white racists. [[John R. Shillady]], executive secretary of the NAACP was badly beaten up when he visited [[Austin, Texas]] in [[1919]].

After the war, Ovington served the [[NationalNAACP Associationas fora board member, executive secretary, and chairman. She inspired other women to join the AdvancementNAACP, and in so doing, made a significant contribution to the multi-cultural composition of Colouredthe People]]organization.<ref asname=EBSCOhost>{{cite boardweb|last=Gillespie|first=Fern|title=Women member,Leaders executiveare secretarythe andbackbone chairmanof NAACP|url=http://www.whoisroslynbrock.com/pdf/CRIS_09.pdf|access-date=December 13, The2013}}</ref> NAACP fought a long legal battle against [[racial segregation|segregation]] and [[racial discrimination]] in housing, education, employment, voting, and transportation. They appealed to the [[United States Supreme Court|Supreme Court]] to rule that several laws passed by [[U.S. southern states|southernSouthern states]] were unconstitutional and won three important judgments between [[1915]]-[[ and 1923]] concerning voting rights and housing.

In June 1934, Ovington gave speeches to 14 different colleges. Her goal was to show the youth that the NAACP association was made up of blacks and whites, specifically to show black youth that there were whites who hated race oppression.<ref name=":1" /> During her speeches, Ovington would show the geography of all the NAACP ___location branches and how far the association has come. "They should know the power the race has gained" - Mary White Ovington<ref>{{cite magazine|last=White Ovington|first=Mary|title=Students Eager for International Forums|date=June 1934|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=11cEAAAAMBAJ&q=1934+june|magazine=The Crisis}}</ref>

She wrote several books and articles including a study of black [[Manhattan]], ''[[Half a Man]]'' ([[1911]]), ''[[Status of the Negro in the United States]]'' ([[1913]]), ''[[Socialism and the Feminist Movement]]'' ([[1914]]), an anthology for black children, ''[[The Upward Path]]'' ([[1919]]), biographical sketches of prominent African Americans, ''[[Portraits in Color]]'' ([[1927]]), an autobiography, ''Reminiscences'' ([[1932]]) and a history of the [[NAACP]], ''[[The Walls Come Tumbling Down]]'' ([[1947]]).

The NAACP was criticisedcriticized by some members of the [[African -American]] community. [[Booker T. Washington]] opposed the group because it proposed an outspoken condemnation of racist policies in contrast to his policy of quiet diplomacy behind the scenes. Members of the organization were physically attacked by white racists. [[Lynching of John Shillady|John R. Shillady]], executive secretary of the NAACP, was badly beaten up when he visited [[Austin, Texas]], in [[1919]].

Ovington retired as a board member of the [[National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People]] in [[1947]] and in doing so, ended her thirty-eight years service with the organisation.

SheOvington wrote several books and articles, including a study of black [[Manhattan]], ''[[Half a Man]]'' ([[1911]]),; ''[[Status of the Negro in the United States]]'' ([[1913]]),; ''[[Socialism and the Feminist Movement]]'' ([[1914]]),; an anthology for black children, ''[[The Upward Path]]'' ([[1919]]),; biographical sketches of prominent African Americans, ''[[Portraits in Color]]'' ([[1927]]),; an autobiography, ''[[Reminiscences (Mary White Ovington book)|Reminiscences]]'' ([[1932]]); and a history of the [[NAACP]], ''[[The Walls ComeCame Tumbling Down (Mary White Ovington book)|The Walls Came Tumbling Down]]'' ([[1947]]).

==Final years and death==

[[Category:1865 births|Ovington, Mary White]]

In 1947, Ovington was forced to resign from the NAACP due to poor health, ending 38 years of service with the organization. In her eighties, she spent her final years with her sister in Massachusetts and died on July 15, 1951, in [[Newton Highlands, Massachusetts|Newton Highlands]], at the age of 86. Ovington also wrote novels and children's books, including ''Hazel'' (1913), which told the story of a young Boston Black girl spending a winter in Alabama at the turn of the century.<ref name=NYPL>{{cite web | url=https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/59df1c20-7f70-0134-198c-00505686a51c | title= Hazel, (1913) |author=Digital Collections, The New York Public Library |access-date=June 13, 2018 |publisher=The New York Public Library, Astor, Lennox, and Tilden Foundation}}</ref>

[[Category:1951 deaths|Ovington, Mary White]]

{{Portal|Biography|United States}}

==Legacy==

Mary White Ovington Middle School (Intermediate School 30) in Brooklyn was named in her honor. Ovington is one of the persons named on [[The Extra Mile]]—Points of Light Volunteer Pathway National Memorial in Washington, D.C. In 2009, she was depicted on a United States postage stamp with [[Mary Church Terrell]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://about.usps.com/news/national-releases/2009/sr09_020.htm

|title= Civil Rights Pioneers Honored on Stamps: Stamps highlight NAACP's 100th Anniversary |publisher= [[United States Postal Service]] |___location= about.usps.com |date=February 21, 2009 |access-date= March 26, 2012}}</ref>

==References==

{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==

{{Commons category}}

* {{Gutenberg author | id=36204| name=Mary White Ovington}}

* {{Internet Archive author |sname=Mary White Ovington}}

* {{Librivox author |id=9441}}

* [http://www.biography.com/people/mary-white-ovington-9430955#final-years Mary White Ovington Biography, Women's Rights Activist, Civil Rights Activist, Activist, Journalist, Children's Activist (1865–1951)], Biography.com

{{NAACP}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ovington, Mary White}}

[[Category:1865 births|Ovington, Mary White]]

[[Category:1951 deaths|Ovington, Mary White]]

[[Category:Activists from Brooklyn]]

[[Category:Activists from New York (state)]]

[[Category:American pacifists]]

[[Category:American suffragists]]

[[Category:American women civil rights activists]]

[[Category:American women's rights activists]]

[[Category:NAACP activists]]

[[Category:Progressive Era in the United States]]

[[Category:Radcliffe College alumni]]

[[Category:American women founders]]

[[Category:American founders]]