Robert Nix Jr. was the first African American to be elected to statewide office in Pennsylvania, and the first African American chief justice of any state supreme court in the nation. Nix was born on July 13, 1928, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the only child of … Read MoreRobert Nelson Cornelius Nix Jr. (1928–2003)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Velvalea “Vel” Phillips was a civil rights pioneer in Wisconsin. She was the first African American and the first woman to serve as an elected official and as a judge in the state. Phillips was born one of three girls … Read MoreVelvalea “Vel” Hortense Rodgers Phillips (1924-2018)
King Virgil Cheek Jr. is a lifelong educator, lawyer, and author, who, along with older brother, James Edward Cheek, served as president of the historic black college, Shaw University. King Cheek was born on May 26, 1937, in Weldon, North Carolina. His mother, Lee Ella … Read MoreKing Virgil Cheek Jr. (1937- )
Milton Murray Holland was a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War and a recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor for his action in the Battle of Chaffin’s Farm. Murray was born on August 1, 1844 in Austin, Texas, the son of Bird … Read MoreMilton Murray Holland (1844-1910)
Police officer, attorney, and judge Earl C. Broady Sr. was born in Los Angeles, California, to Wiley T. Broady and Lillie A. Broady on December 24, 1904. He became a janitor at age thirteen and worked several years to help his family. After graduating from … Read MoreEarl C. Broady, Sr. (1904-1992)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Laurence Allen Elder, known generally as Larry Elder or the “Sage of South Central,” is an African American lawyer, conservative political columnist, and media personality. He is a libertarian-wing Republican and advocates for a variety of causes, spanning from domestic issues … Read MoreLaurence Allen “Larry” Elder (1952– )
Image Courtesy of the African American Museum and Library, Oakland, California Attorney, civil rights leader, and judge Donald Pitts McCullum was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, to Charles A. McCullum and Irene Pitts McCullum on January 28, 1928. He earned a bachelor of arts degree … Read MoreDonald Pitts McCullum (1928-1988)
In the essay below, journalist and historian Amina Hassan describes her 2015 biography of Loren Miller, a significant but understudied figure in the long twentieth century campaign for civil rights and racial justice. This book on Loren Miller’s life has its origins in my growing … Read MoreLoren Miller: Legal Crusader in the Long Struggle for Racial Justice in the Twentieth Century
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” James Apostle Fields was a former enslaved person who became an influential black lawyer and teacher serving in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1890 to 1891. Although sources differ on the exact date in 1844 on which Fields was born, … Read MoreJames Apostle Fields (1844–1903)
Buck Franklin was an attorney in Tulsa, Oklahoma, who is most notably known for defending the survivors of the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921. He was also father to the venerable civil rights advocate and historian John Hope Franklin. Franklin was born the seventh of … Read MoreBuck Colbert Franklin (1879-1960)
