Dorothy Height starred in recent Census ad

Dorothy I. Height, a founding matriarch of the American civil rights movement, died Tuesday at age 98. One of her final appeals to the American public came in a recent public service announcement for the 2010 Census. Officials hoped her appeal would help boost participation rates among minorities.

"You have the power to benefit your community for the next 10 years," she said in the message (watch it above). "You have the right to be counted -- it's your civic duty. Don't let anybody or anything stop you."