The history of the United States is very intertwined with the struggles of people with different races. African Americans were also a part of this struggle particularly in the realm of law and justice. From fighting for civil rights to being part of landmark Supreme Court cases. Here is the list of 9 famous African American lawyers who created history.
9 Lawyers Who Made Indelible Marks on U.S. Legal History
Macon Bolling Allen
Macon Bolling Allen is part of history. He was the first African American licensed to practice law in the United States. Allen was born in 181. He began his journey from Maine, where he faced immense challenges due to his race.
Back in the 1840s, Allen quit his job as an instructor in Indiana to become an apprentice to General Samuel Fessenden. Fessenden was a renowned attorney in Maine at that time. With the help and guidance of Fessenden, he passed the Maine Bar examination. Allen became an African American attorney when Africans were not even believed to be citizens of the US.
He was the first black male with a license to practice law in the United States. Back in his practicing days, most of the individuals in Maine were white, so it became quite challenging for him to find clients. Because of this, he moved to Boston, MA. But the racist attitude of people still followed him. Even after all the discrimination in 1848, he became the first black judge in the country.
James Weldon Johnson
James Weldon Johson was one of the most prominent lawyers in the history of the US. He was known for his role in the creation of the Harlem Renaissance. Johnson was also a celebrated poet, leader of the NAACP, and civil rights activist, apart from being an attorney. He founded the newspaper called The Daily American.
Not just that, he was the first African American attorney who passed the bar exam in Florida. Johnson was also a published author, some of his publications included. The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man (1912) and God’s Trombones (1927). His role as a civil right activist set the stage for future legal battles against racial discrimination.
Charles H. Houston
Charles H. Houston is known for architecting the NAACP’s legal strategy that laid the foundation of the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education. He served as the Harvard Law Review’s first African American editor. Additionally, he also served as a vice dean of Howard University’s law school. He stood in a legal fight against “separate but equal.” His vision and dedication towards biased rights and challenging segregation laws transformed the legal landscape and shaped the civil right movement in the US.
The Supreme Court’s 1938 decision in Missouri, ex rel. Gaines v. Canada, holding that it was unlawful to provide financial aid to African-American students attending out-of-state law schools rather than admitting them to the state’s sole law school, was arguably his greatest achievement. He was well known for being Thurgood Marshall’s mentor.
Fred Gray
Fred Gray played a significant role in the civil rights movement. He has represented Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Park, and more. Gray is among the most influential African American lawyers in history. He took a challenging legal battle against segregation in Alabama helped in dismantling the oppressive law for dark-skinned people and championed the cause of equality for African Americans.
In 1970, Gray went to Alabama to serve as an elected representative from Tuskegee. After that, President Jimmy Carter nominated Gray to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama in 1979, but Gray was forced to withdraw his name from consideration in light of massive opposition from conservative political foes. He was awarded the Soaring Eagles Award in 2003 from the Minority Caucus of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.
Thurgood Marshall
Thurgood Marshall was the first African American Supreme Court Justice. He was born in Baltimore and was Charles Hamilton, Houston’s leading trainee. He was not planning on going to Howard University and rather he applied for the University of Maryland Law School in 1930. However, the university denied him admission on the basis of his race.
Later, Marshall graduated from Howard and passed the bar. When he started practicing, he took legal action against the University of Maryland Law School for denying admission to students of different races. He played a major role in fighting for the rights of African Americans when it came to legal education. Marshall has represented various Supreme Court cases more than anyone in history.
Jane Bolin
Jane Bolin was an African American female judge in the United States. She earned her J.D. degree from Yale Law School in 1931. Jane was also the first African American woman to graduate from Yale. She passed the New York bar exam and Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia appointed her to serve as Judge of the Domestic Relations Court in 1939.
Jane served 40 years on the bench. During this tenure she achieved two significant civil rights reforms: she oversaw the assignment of probation officers in the court system without regard for race or religion, and she also championed a provision that publicly funded yet privately owned child-care agencies must accept children without regard to racial or ethnic background.
Star Jones
Star Jones is a popular legal figure, and she is known for her legal work, television personality, and for advocating various legal causes. Star Jones was a common name in households back in the late 90s to the 00s. She was hosting a popular TV show The View.
She has been the voice of social justice with her legal expertise and public platform fame. The View was a multi-generational group of co-hosts discussing hot topics. Each member of the show panel had different opinions and ideologies that lead to heated conversations. This show is still a success to this day and is a part of Jones’ legacy.
Charlotte E. Ray
Charlotte E. Ray was the first African American woman who graduated from a law school in the US. She made history and broke various barriers in the late 19th century and she became an advocate for women’s rights and civil rights. Her advocacy paved the way for the future of women lawyers.
She studied at Howard University, becoming the first woman admitted to the District of Columbia Bar in 1872. She came into the limelight after her well-known case, in which she represented Martha Gadley seeking a divorce from her abusive husband.
Constance Baker Motley
Constance Baker Motley was a prominent civil rights attorney, and she was the first African American woman to become a federal judge. She made a significant contribution to the world of law. Not just that, she was also the first woman to serve as a member of the New York State Senate. Additionally, Motley was the first woman to serve as Manhattan borough president.