Atlanta, Georgia (October 13, 1923 -July 14, 2005) 81 yrs

Dorothy Bolder, civil rights activist, domestic worker, and founder of the National Domestic Workers Union of America (NDWUA). Bolden injured her eyes in a terrible fall, at 3 yrs old. She struggled with vision impairment for the rest of her life.  At the end of a long day in 1940, Dorothy’s employer told her to stay late and wash the dishes. She refused and left. On her walk home, two police officers arrested her for talking back to a white woman. Bolden knew the bus was where domestics could meet, share stories, and support each other. She rode buses all over Atlanta and spoke to hundreds of women, most agreed that a union was needed. In the summer of 1968, over 70 domestic workers elected Dorothy as the president of the NDWUA. It was the first formal organization to support domestic workers in the country. Although it had the word national in the title, it primarily served women in the Atlanta area.