May 21, 1881 - Clara Barton forms the American Red Cross

[redqueen]

...

Born on December 25, 1821, Clara Barton became a teacher at the age of 15, and worked in the U.S. Patent Office as a clerk in her 30s. With the beginning of the Civil War, Barton knew that her help was needed, and she quickly became involved by providing supplies and support to wounded soldiers.

Before long, she was aiding soldiers in combat, which earned her the nickname “the angel of the battlefield”. Toward the end of the war, Barton was instrumental in establishing a way to reunite missing men with their families, foreshadowing what is still today one of the Red Cross’ most valuable services.

Following the Civil War, she traveled to Europe and continued her work by assisting with the preparation of military hospitals during the Franco-Prussian War. Barton was inspired by the work of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, which she worked with while in Europe, to form the American Association of the Red Cross.

In addition to her tireless work for wounded and needy soldiers, Barton was active in many other pursuits, including women’s suffrage, civil rights, education, and prison reform. An advocate of equality, she once stated: “I may sometimes be willing to teach for nothing, but if paid at all, I shall never do a man's work for less than a man's pay.”

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For nearly 400 true stories of trailblazing girls and women, visit A Mighty Girl’s Biography section at http://www.amightygirl.com/books/history-biography/biography

[Lint Head]

1. Only to be hijacked by the usual cynical Republican dirty tricks.

The Nation investigation found that shortly after her appointment to head the $1.7-billion-a-year charity, Mrs. Dole assembled a special team of longtime political advisers. Their job was to vet important Red Cross actions, both managerial and scientific, with a political sensitivity to what might help or hurt Bob Dole's presidential ambitions.

When her husband was scrambling for the backing of the Christian Coalition prior to the Republican primaries, Mrs. Dole ordered her allies to rewrite an AIDS prevention manual to cater to Christian right orthodoxies about homosexuality, premarital sex and condom use. Also shoring up Bob Dole's standing with the Christian right, Elizabeth Dole took to the hustings while in office at the Red Cross to give frequent speeches about her born-again Christian commitment.

Read more: http://www.thenation.com/article/red-cross-question-competence#ixzz2TzzqAcXF

[pansypoo53219]

2. several years ago, i found a little book at an estate sale by her recounting the disaster she

had helped. sadly, i did nt read the whole book, but just some of he disasters. she complained of donations beiing rummage or useless then. for galavston, she recounted of a woman who was discovered w/ her long hair entwined in a chandelier dead. and a carolina coast disaster. she met black veterans from he civil war she knew. i learned. i read before ebay. almost 1/2 way thru 8 vol famous orations from 1908.