Jeffrey, Mildred (1910–2004)

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Jeffrey, Mildred (1910–2004)

American labor and civil-rights activist. Name variations: Millie Jeffrey. Born Mildred McWilliams, Dec 29, 1910, in Alton, Iowa; died Mar 24, 2004, in Detroit, MI; University of Minnesota, degree in psychology, 1932; Bryn Mawr, MA in social economy, 1932; m. Homer Newman Jeffrey (labor organizer), 1936 (div. 1950s); children: Balfour Jeffrey, Sharon Lehrer.

As the 1st woman to head a department for United Automobile Workers union, became director of its Women's Bureau (1944), ran the union's radio station (1949–54) and the consumer affairs department (1968–76); marched in the South with Martin Luther King Jr.; was a founder of the National Women's Political Caucus (1971); helped propel careers of women into politics; served on board of governors of Wayne State University for 16 years. Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton (2000).

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