Believing in the causes of social and economic justice and the protection of civil and human rights, Noreen McKee is one of the founders of the Justice Center of Rensselaer County.
She began her career as a social worker for Catholic Social Services in York, Pennsylvania in the 1970’s, and settling the Vietnamese refugees was one of her first assignments. Thereafter, she joined the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and taught Eskimo and Indian children struggling with poverty and discrimination in the Alaskan bush.
For the 32 years prior to moving to Troy in 2012, Noreen and her husband, Steve McKee, author and sports columnist for the Wall St. Journal, lived in Brooklyn. There she was inspired by the life and work of Dorothy Day, the social activist who founded the Catholic Worker Movement in the 1930’s. Day espoused nonviolence and hospitality for the impoverished and downtrodden, and her commitment to social justice spanned most of the twentieth century. Dorothy Day was also the inspiration for the founders of Unity House in Troy where Noreen is on the board of directors and an active member of its advocacy committee, which is dedicated to giving voice to the voiceless by shining the spotlight on the injustices suffered by the poor and the racial inequality that fuels poverty.
Most recently in her role as board member of the League of Women Voters of Rensselaer County, she led the successful fight to bring early voting into the heart of downtown Troy to provide equitable access to early voting for minorities and low-income voters. Voting is a fundamental right that sustains our democracy. Particularly at a time when our democracy is under threat as numerous state legislatures enact voter suppression laws, early voting provides the fuel that drives people to the polls. Nine days of early voting including two weekends gives greater flexibility for those who confront barriers that make it difficult to cast ballots when voting occurs on just one day of the year.