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Thurgood Marshall

Origin: Baltimore, Maryland
(July 2, 1908 - January 24, 1993)

Heroic Values: Achievement, Faith, Integrity, Perseverance, Tolerance, Vision, Wisdom

Background

Marshall was the first African-American to serve on the Supreme Court. Son of a railroad porter and teacher, Marshall would eventually challenge the racial prejudices that prevailed throughout American society. He worked at all white country club and was rejected by the University of Maryland Law School due to his race.

Marshall is best known for his role as chief counsel for the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) in the Brown vs. Board of Education (Topeka, Kansas.) The challenge was to overturn an original Supreme Court decision on Plessy, vs. Ferguson, which made it legal to have segregated schools, so long that they were ‘equal’ in terms of facilities and resources available to them. This was clearly not the case, not only in resources available but also socially and politically. Marshall fought for civil rights and liberties in 32 cases and won 29 of them, he set the stage for the Civil Rights movement, despite adversity. This was made clear by his comments concerning the very conservative Supreme Court, finding himself in the minority as a liberal; “power, not reason, is the new currency of this Court's decision making." A more candid look at his commitment to justice was his comment on his acceptance into the Supreme Court; “I have a lifetime appointment and I intend to serve it. I expect to die at 110, shot by a jealous husband."

Submitted by: Kit Bennett

Sources

Wikipedia
The online encyclopedia

PBS.org
Marshall's biography

Biography.com
Marshall's page