I'm really sorry that my daughter didn't have an opportunity to grow up in a segregated African-American community, as I did in the early years of my life in St. Louis, where the lawyer lived next to the house painter... That can have an enormously powerful influence on the community and the value of keeping and raising our children properly. 
-- Faye WattletonAlyce Faye Wattleton was born in St. Louis, Missouri July 8, 1943. Wattleton enrolled at Ohio State University, earning her Bachelor of Science degree in nursing. After graduation, she went on to teach nurses at the Miami Valley Hospital School in Dayton, Ohio, before returning to school to get her Master's Degree in maternal and infant care from Columbia University.
While at Columbia, Wattleton trained as a midwife at a Harlem hospital. During the 1960's, abortions were illegal in most states. As a result, Wattleton saw firsthand the length to which women went to undergo illegal abortions. It was then that she decided to pursue a career in which she would take a stand in support of women's rights to reproductive freedom.
In 1978, Wattleton became the youngest and first African-American to become President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. She held that position until 1992. While president, Wattleton worked tirelessly to maintain women's rights to an abortion, as well as improve the reproductive health of women with low incomes.
Upon her retirement, Wattleton went on to cofound the Center for Gender Equality in 1995, an organization which focuses on the equality of women. Today, she is the President of the Center for the Advancement of Women as well as a member of Columbia University's Board of Trustees.
While at Columbia, Wattleton trained as a midwife at a Harlem hospital. During the 1960's, abortions were illegal in most states. As a result, Wattleton saw firsthand the length to which women went to undergo illegal abortions. It was then that she decided to pursue a career in which she would take a stand in support of women's rights to reproductive freedom.
In 1978, Wattleton became the youngest and first African-American to become President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. She held that position until 1992. While president, Wattleton worked tirelessly to maintain women's rights to an abortion, as well as improve the reproductive health of women with low incomes.
Upon her retirement, Wattleton went on to cofound the Center for Gender Equality in 1995, an organization which focuses on the equality of women. Today, she is the President of the Center for the Advancement of Women as well as a member of Columbia University's Board of Trustees.
