Ms. Marian Wright Edelman (b. 1939) is a lifelong advocate for the human rights of children and other vulnerable populations in our country . She is the founder and president of the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) in Washington, DC, the nation’s strongest organizational voice on behalf of children and families. Wright Edelman studied law at Yale University and began her public career as a civil rights lawyer in Mississippi, the first black woman to pass the bar in that state. Her Mississippi experience led her to encourage Martin Luther King, Jr. and SCLC to deepen and expand their plans for a national Poor People’s Campaign. Since founding CDF in 1973, Wright Edelman has become an extremely well- respected leader on educational and social policy issues relating to the wellbeing of youth.