Year Honored: 2000
Birth: 1934 - 2001
Biography
Emily G. Morris was the first African American elected to a county-wide office in Delaware, serving from 1980 to 1992 as Prothonotary of the Kent County Superior Court. In her role she upgraded staff positions, increased salaries, and improved the overall working conditions of her employees. Morris was the catalyst for the formation of the Kent County Black Coalition and the state-wide housing coalition. She effectively advocated and lobbied for the homeless and disenfranchised.
She has also helped to meet the demand for quality childcare facilities in Kent County by expanding a center from one that accommodated 28 students that one could fit 200. The organization served low to moderate income families, as well as the migrant community in Kent County, and is open 24 hours a day. Morris volunteered her time helping childcare directors’ work through management and administrative challenges.
Morris served as chair of the State Human Relations Commissions and as chair of the Delaware State Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights. She is “respected for her ability to help all people, regardless of background, secure vital services.” She has been awarded the Order of the First State and was selected by the Delaware African American Historical Society as one of fifty ‘African American Women of Distinction.’
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Sources and Additional Readings
Delaware Commission for Women. (2006). Twenty-Fifth Anniversary: Hall of Fame of Delaware Women: The Legacy Endures.
