Mother Jones

Nominated For: being a fierce labor organizer and fighter for the working class in the early days of the movement, when such activities could very easily get you killed. She strove especially hard for miners and to abolish child labor.
Frequently arrested for her hell-raising ways, she was once in court when objections were raised to the defendants’ profanity-laced testimony. When called out by the judge she said:
“Why, Judge,” Mother Jones said, “That’s how working people pray.”
“Do *you* pray that way, Mother?” the Judge asked.
“When I want an answer in a hurry, I do!” she replied.

Quotes: “Pray for the dead, fight like hell for the living!”
“I have been in jail more than once and I expect to go again. If you are too cowardly to fight, I will fight.”

For more information: http://www.aflcio.org/About/Our-History/Key-People-in-Labor-History/Mother-Jones-1837-1930