Edward Wilson is a retired judge and lawyer. In this segment, he shares his views on behalf of the Black community on ways that Black youth can avoid arrest or incarceration.
learn more*Ashby Solomzi Peter Mda was born on this date in 1916. He was a Black African teacher, lawyer, and political activist. Also known as A. P. Mda, Peter Mda was born in the Herschel District of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. He was given the name “Ashby” as he was born on Ash Wednesday. He […]
learn more*Braden v. United States, 365 U.S. 431, was decided on this date in 1961. In this case, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the petitioner, Carl Braden, ‘s conviction, based on his refusal to answer questions posed by the House of Representatives, did not violate his First Amendment rights and was therefore […]
learn more*The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was established on this date in 1996. The TRC was a court-like restorative justice body assembled in South Africa after the end of apartheid. The TRC was set up in Cape Town under terms of the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act, No. 34 of 1995. The hearings […]
learn more*The Slave Compensation Act 1837 was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, signed into law on December 23, 1837. Together with the Slavery Abolition Act 1833, it authorized the Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt to compensate slave owners in the British colonies of approximately £20 million for the freeing of […]
learn more*William Twine was born on this date in 1864. He was a Black lawyer and newspaper publisher. William Henry Twine was born a freedman in Richmond, Kentucky. His father, Thomas J. Twine, was a wheelwright and former slave of mixed Black and Native American ancestry; his mother, Lizzie Twine, was an African woman. Twine settled […]
learn more*The Barbados Slave Code was enacted on this date in 1661. Officially titled as An Act for the better ordering and governing of Negroes, it was a law passed by the Parliament of Barbados to provide a legal basis for slavery in the English colony of Barbados. Throughout British North America, slavery evolved in practice […]
learn more*Peter Bynoe was born on March 20, 1951. He is a Black attorney and businessman. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Peter Charles Bernard Bynoe’s father, Victor C. Bynoe, emigrated from Barbados at age 13 and became a successful attorney; he represented Boston Celtics player Bill Russell. He also had an Uncle, John Bynoe, who was active […]
learn more*On this date in 1986, Batson v. Kentucky was decided. A landmark United States Supreme Court decision ruled that a prosecutor’s use of a peremptory challenge in a criminal case—dismissing jurors without stating a valid cause—may not be used to exclude jurors based solely on their race. The Court ruled that this practice violated the […]
learn more*On this date in 1965, Swain v. Alabama was decided. This case was heard before the United States Supreme Court regarding the legality of a struck jury. Robert Swain, a Black man, was indicted and convicted of rape in the Circuit Court of Talladega County, Alabama, and sentenced to death by an all-white jury. The […]
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