Working for equality…

Bertha Pitts Campbell was born in Kansas, June 30, 1889; she became a prominent civil rights activist in Seattle. Bertha was the only African American student at Montrose High School where she delivered the valedictorian address in 1908. She attended Howard University as one of the 22 women at the school and co-founded Delta Sigma Theta in 1913. Bertha committed her life to activism an organizing. In 1936, she was the first African American woman to vote on the local YWCA board and served four terms as chairperson. In 1942, she was a charter member of the Christian Friends for Racial Equality working to expand housing and opportunities for the African American community until 1965. At 92, Bertha led 10,000 members of Delta Sigma Theta as they marched in Washington, D.C. to celebrate women’s suffrage. Throughout her life, Bertha worked tirelessly for equality, the Washington State House of Representatives honored her in 1987, and Seattle proclaimed June 13, 1987,as Bertha Pitts Campbell Day. Bertha lived to be 101 years old