The Children’s Defense Fund was founded by Marian Wright Edelman, the first African American female admitted to the Mississippi Bar. Edelman was the former director of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Legal Defense and Educational Fund (in Jackson, Mississippi) and worked with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as counsel for Dr. King’s Poor People’s Campaign. The Children’s Defense Fund challenges the United States to improve policies and programs for children. The Children’s Defense Fund is known for careful research regarding children’s survival, protection, and development, in all racial and income groups. It also analyzes how federal and state policies affect children, their families, and their communities. Bipartisan support to enact laws to help children fulfill their potential and escape poverty ...