And the Winner is...

TAMI CHARLES EVA SÁNCHEZ GÓMEZ

words by illustrations by

“And the winner is . . .�

The people leaned in. Dorothy Height was standing next to 16 opponents. Everyone waited for the judges to name the winner.

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Dorothy had worked hard to get to the finals of the speech contest. She was an outstanding student and made all A’s. She also sang with her school’s singing club. Performing helped Dorothy become confident in front of many people.

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In time, Dorothy became an impressive public speaker, too. She entered her school’s Impromptu Speech Contest.

In this contest, her speech was impromptu, or right on the spot. She could not prepare the words beforehand.

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Dorothy won her school’s speech contest. Her prize was a trip to the state speech finals. A person of color had never won at state before.

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The finals would be at the state capital, 200 miles from home. To make the moment special, Dorothy’s mom gave her a beautiful white dress. “Whatever happens, hold yourself together,� her mom said.

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Dorothy’s teacher and principal came with her on the trip to the finals. They left early for the big event. After the long drive, Dorothy needed to get into her dress. They stopped at a hotel near the speech contest hall.

Then, there was trouble.

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The year was 1928. Many African Americans faced segregation. Some stores and restaurants would not serve them because of their skin color.

African Americans were not always free to go where they wanted.

Dorothy’s teacher came out of the hotel with tears in her eyes.

“You can’t get dressed here,” she said.

“Why not?” Dorothy asked.

“They will not let you come in because of the color of your skin,” she said.

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But nothing was going to stop Dorothy. Quickly, she came up with a plan. She would get dressed in the restroom at the speech contest hall.

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Dorothy could have quit, but she remembered her mother’s words: “Hold yourself together.”

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Dorothy waited for her turn. Once she was given her topic, she would have just ten minutes to think of what to say.

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It was finally Dorothy’s turn to speak. She walked nervously to the podium. More than 2,000 faces looked back at her.

Dorothy breathed deeply and let her words fill the hall. She spoke about respect and how all people are part of the same human family. She spoke about the injustice at the hotel. Her voice soared as she spoke of freedom and justice for all.

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The people cheered wildly.

The judges’ pick was clear: “And the winner is . . . Dorothy Height!”

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