Despite being in America, Kelly remained interested in the situation in Ireland and her work in the tenements gave her insight into the lives of the poor.

[6][7][8] An individualist anarchist in the 1880s, Kelly published frequent articles in the periodicals Liberty and the Irish World.

She founded a medical clinic in Chelsea as well as being on the surgical staff at the New York Infirmary for Women and Children for over 30 years.

[8] She was the only female patron of the Gaelic Society in New York and served as the chairwoman of the 1913 Irish Historic Pageant.

As a result of the members of the earlier organisations being listed, the IPL believed they were better positioned to lobby for the Irish Republic in Washington.

[6][7][8][16][12] Kelly was one of the organizers of the American Women Pickets for the Enforcement of America's War Aims which protested at the British Embassy in Washington in 1920.

They also organized a strike at Chelsea Piers, which lasted three and a half weeks, in protest of the British Prime Minister's actions in relation to Irish Archbishop Daniel Mannix and the arrest of the Cork Mayor Terence MacSwiney.

The strike spread to Brooklyn, New Jersey, and Boston and included Irish, Italian, and African-American workers.

[18][8] In January 1921, Kelly and Kathleen O'Brennan formed an American branch of the Irish White Cross.