Mabel Grammer facts for kids

Mabel Grammer (1915 – June 5, 2002) was an African-American journalist. She created a special plan called the "Brown Baby Plan." This plan helped about 500 mixed-race German orphans find new homes. These children needed families after World War II.

Early Life and Activism

Mabel Grammer was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas. As a child, she had a serious illness that affected her health. After she got better, she learned she would not be able to have children of her own.

She later graduated from Ohio State University. In the 1940s, she became a civil rights activist. She worked to fight for equal rights for all people. During this time, she also wrote for a newspaper called the Washington Afro-American.

Helping Children in Germany

In 1950, Mabel married Oscar Grammer. She moved with him to Mannheim, Germany, where he was stationed with the United States military. While living there, Mabel visited local orphanages. She noticed that many mixed-race children, born to German mothers and African-American fathers, were not being adopted. This was due to unfair prejudice against mixed-race children at the time.

Mabel decided to help. She started adopting children herself. Over the years she lived in Germany, she adopted 12 children into her own family.

The "Brown Baby Plan"

Mabel Grammer wanted to help more children find homes. She began telling people in the United States about the problem. From 1951 to 1954, she wrote many articles and announcements. These appeared in the Afro-American, a newspaper in Baltimore.

She asked African American families to adopt these German children. She called her effort the "Brown Baby Plan." Mabel worked with many German groups to arrange adoptions. She helped simplify the process for orphanages and families. This also protected families from American adoption agencies that showed prejudice against African Americans.

Recognition and Challenges

Mabel Grammer's work was very popular in Germany. German newspapers called her "Mommie Mabel." They saw her as a loving mother to the children of the occupation.

However, some groups had concerns. The German Child Welfare Office and American adoption agencies worried. They felt she did not have a system to check on the children after they were adopted.

In 1965, Mabel and her family moved back to the United States. They settled in Washington, D.C.. In 1968, Pope Paul VI gave her a special humanitarian award. This award recognized her great work in helping others.

Mabel Grammer passed away on June 5, 2002, due to a health condition.

See also

• Miki Sawada, who helped mixed-race orphans in Japan