People, Locations, Episodes

Black History and American Restrictive Housing Covenants, a story

*On this date in 1924, Black History and restrictive housing covenants in America are affirmed. Historically, restrictive covenants were used in real estate transactions to influence the demographics of communities in the U.S. The restrictions kept certain populations out of specific neighborhoods, encouraging racial, ethnic, and cultural segregation.   It wasn’t uncommon for real estate contracts to […]

Jack Greenberg, Lawyer born.

*Jack Greenberg was born on this date in 1924. He was a white Jewish-American attorney and legal scholar born in Brooklyn, New York.  Greenberg served in the United States Navy during World War II and fought at Okinawa and Iwo Jima. He commanded a landing craft in the invasion of Iheya Shima, one of the final campaigns of the war. During his […]

Benjamin Hooks, Activist, Lawyer, and Minister born

*Benjamin Hooks was born on this date in 1925. He was an African American civil rights activist, lawyer and minister.

Robert Wright, Lawyer born

*Robert Wright was born on this date in 1925. He was a Black lawyer and public servant.  Born in Chicago, Illinois, Robert Wright was the son of Julius Wright and Myrtle Terrell. He graduated from East High School in 1943. After graduation, He enrolled in the United States Army and served in England, France, and […]

The National Bar Association is Formed

On this date in 1925, the National Bar Association (NBA), formally organized. It is the nation’s oldest and largest national association of predominately African American lawyers and judges.

Nathaniel R. Jones, Lawyer, and Judge born

*Nathaniel R. Jones was born on this date in 1926. He was a Black attorney, judge, and law professor. Nathaniel Raphael Jones was born in the Smoky Hollow district of Youngstown, Ohio, several blocks from a federal courthouse that now bears his name. Although he lived in an integrated neighborhood and attended an integrated public […]

Corrigan v. Buckley is decided

*On this date in 1926, Corrigan v. Buckley, 271 U.S. 323 (1926), was decided. This U.S. Supreme Court case ruled that the racially restrictive covenant of multiple residents on S Street N.W., between 18th Street and New Hampshire Avenue, in Washington, DC, was a legally binding document that made selling a house to a Black […]

South Africa’s First Immorality Act is Imposed

*On this date, 1927, South Africa’s first Immorality Act was issued. This was the title of acts of the Parliament of South Africa, which prohibited, amongst other things, sexual relations between white people and people of different races until amended first in 1950. Part of the Apartheid regime was installed to prohibit sex between whites […]

Buck v. Bell (Supreme Court Case) is Decided

*On this date in 1927, the Supreme Court ruled in Buck v. Bell, 274 U.S. 200.  This episode followed the Virginia Racial Integrity Act of 1924 and channeled race into an unmonitored deciding factor of sterilization in America.   Buck v. Bell was the United States Supreme Court ruling that a state statute permitting compulsory sterilization of the unfit, including the intellectually disabled, “for the protection and health of the […]

Carl Stokes, Politician born

Carl Stokes was born on this date in 1927. He was an African American lawyer and politician.

A. L. Higginbotham, Judge, Educator, and Activist born

*On this date in 1928, A. L. Higginbotham Jr. was born. He was an African American federal judge, scholar, and civil rights advocate.

Demetrius Newton, Politician, and Lawyer born

*Demetrius Newton was born on this date in 1928. He was a politician and civil rights lawyer.

Newton, a native of Fairfield, Ala. and was a graduate of Fairfield Industrial H.S. Newton then graduated from Wilberforce University in Ohio and Boston University’s law school. After he graduated from law school, Newton served in the United States Army’s 325th Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division during the Korean War. After his service in the military, Newton moved to Birmingham, Alabama, where he worked as a civil rights attorney.

Fred Gray, Attorney and Preacher born

*Fred Gray was born on this date in 1930. He is a Black civil rights attorney, preacher, and activist.   Born in Montgomery, Alabama, Fred David Gray attended the Loveless School, where his aunt taught, until the seventh grade. He attended the Nashville Christian Institute (NCI), a boarding school operated by the Churches of Christ. He assisted the NCI president in […]

Nixon v. Condon Is Decided

*On this date in 1932, Nixon v. Condon was decided. This voting rights case was decided by the United States Supreme Court, which found the all-white Democratic Party primary in Texas unconstitutional. Nixon v. Condon was one of four cases brought to challenge the Texas all-white Democratic Party primary. The National Association for the Advancement […]

James Nabrit III, Lawyer born

*James Nabrit III was born on this date in 1932. He was an African American civil rights attorney and legal activist.

James Madison Nabrit III was born in Houston, Texas, the son of James Nabrit, Jr., a prominent civil rights attorney, law professor and later President of Howard University. He grew up in Washington, D.C., where he attended segregated public schools through part of high school.