Dorothy Day
Dorothy Day was born in Brooklyn, NY on November 8, 1897. In 1906 her family moved to Chicago which is where she first formed her positive impressions of Catholicism, when a friend's mother showed no embarrassment when praying in front of Day. It was also in Chicago where she developed her deep interest in the desolate urban neighborhoods that many people avoid. After receiving a scholarship, she attended the University of Illinios campus at Urbana in 1914, but only lasted two years there. New York became her new home when she moved there after finding a job as a reported for the city's only socialist daily. This was the first of a handful of journalism jobs. Her next one was for a magaznie that opposed American involvement in the European War. This job also did not last long because the magazine was discontinued [1].
Dorothy's enthusiasm for social activism landed her in jail in November of 1917 after being one of forty women protesting exclusion from the electorate in front of the White House. The women were forcefully handled at the rural workhouse where they were taken, causing them to retaliate with a hunger strike. They were freed by a presidential order [2].
While Dorothy's passion for social activism developed quickly, her religious growth was a slower process. Growing up she attended an Episcopal Church and as a young journalist she would sometimes make trips late at night to St. Joseph's Catholic Church in New York City.
