THE PIONEERS

Marshall, Wilder and Brooke Pave the Way

Marshall Associate Justice

By Kristen Jones

During times of great upheaval in the United States, Thurgood Marshall, L. Douglas Wilder and Edward W. Brooke—three black men with differing backgrounds and politics—became symbols of highly significant change in the nation. Other black leaders who have gone on to achieve great things in politics and government after them, can attribute a large part of their success to the doors opened by these three important pioneers.

The Right Man for the Court

On Oct. 2, 1967, Chief Justice Earl Warren swore in Thurgood Marshall as the first black justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Marshall, who was confirmed in a 69-11 floor vote by the U.S. Senate to join the Court, had previously been confirmed by the Senate as a federal judge in the Kennedy administration and then as solicitor general for President Lyndon Johnson. President Johnson nominated Marshall to the Supreme Court in June 1967 to replace retiring Justice Tom Clark, who left the Court after his son, Ramsey Clark, became attorney general. Johnson said Marshall was “best qualified by training and by very valuable service to the country. I believe it is the right thing to do, the right time to do it, the right man and the right place.”

As chief counsel for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in the 1940s and ’50s, Marshall was the architect and executor of the legal strategy that ended the era of official racial segregation. The great-grandson of an enslaved person,Marshall was born in Baltimore, Md., in 1908. After being r ejected from the University of Maryland Law School on account of his race, he was accepted at all-black Howard University in Washington, D.C. At Howard, he studied under the tutelage of civil liberties lawyer Charles H. Houston and in 1933 graduated first in his class. In 1936, he joined the legal division of the NAACP, of which Houston was director, and two years later succeeded his mentor in the organization’s top legal post. During his 24 years on the high court, Associate Justice Marshall consistently challenged discrimination based on race or sex, opposed the death penalty, and vehemently defended affirmative action. He supported the rights of criminal defendants and defended the right to privacy. As appointments by a largely Republican White House changed the ideology of the Supreme Court, Marshall found his liberal views increasingly in the minority. He retired in 1991 because of declining health and died in 1993. After his death, the Court approved a special resolution honoring him.

The First Popularly Elected Black Governor

On Nov. 7, 1989, Lawrence Douglas Wilder who was born in 1931 and named after famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass, made history when he became the first popularly elected black governor in the U.S.. He served as governor of Virginia from 1990 until 1994.

Wilder, a grandson of former slaves, was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Korean War but learned that he would still be exposed to segregation and racism despite earning a Bronze Star for his heroism. Following his military service, he took advantage of the G.I. Bill to attend law school at Howard University (at the time, his home state of Virginia barred blacks from attending its law schools).

After graduating, he established a law firm in Virginia and entered politics with a successful run for Virginia state senator. During his five terms as state senator, he chaired committees on transportation, rehabilitation and social services, privileges and elections, the Virginia Advisory Legislative Council and the Senate Steering Committee, which appoints committee members. He successfully sponsored Virginia’s first drug paraphernalia law and the

L. Douglas Wilder Governor of Virginia

1990-1994 compulsory school attendance law. Other legislative achievements include providing state healthcare coverage for sickle cell anemia patients, toughening penalties for capital murders and prison escapees, and expanding lowand moderate-income housing. For eight years, he persisted in sponsoring legislation that eventually led to establishing a state holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

In 1985, he was elected lieutenant governor and served from 1986 to 1990 before being elected governor in 1989. He served in that position for four years. As governor, he was commended for his sound fiscal management and balancing the state budget during difficult economic times. Financial World magazine ranked Virginia as the best-managed state in the U.S. for two consecutive years under his administration.

After a 10-year hiatus following his term as governor, in 2005, Wilder became mayor of the city of Richmond—a former capital of the defeated Confederate States of America during the Civil War. When his term ended in 2009, he decided not to pursue re-election.

A Black Senator for Both Parties

On Nov. 8, 1966, Edward W. Brooke III became the first black U.S. senator elected by popular vote. Hailing from Washington, D.C., he ended an 86-year absence of African American senators there. He represented Massachusetts.

Brooke notably labeled himself a “creative Republican,” and his moderate views would help him gain support from members of both parties. Upon accepting the Senate seat, he promised to “unite men who have not been united before,” reiterating his pledge to represent his constituents equally regardless of race.

Born to a middle-class black family, Brooke was raised in Washington, D.C., and graduated from the Boston University School of Law in 1948 after serving in the United States Army during World War II. Beginning in 1950, he became involved in politics, when he ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Massachusetts House of Representatives. After serving as chairman of the Finance Commission of Boston, Brooke was elected attorney general of the state in 1962, becoming the first African American to be elected attorney general of any state. He served as attorney general for four years, before running for

Edward W. Brooke U.S. Senator (Mass.)

1967-1979

the U.S. Senate in 1966. In that election, he defeated Democratic Gov. Endicott Peabody in a landslide and was seated on Jan. 3, 1967. In the Senate, Brooke aligned with the liberal faction in the Republican party, and he co-wrote the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which prohibited housing discrimination. He was re-elected to a second term in 1972 after defeating attorney John Droney.

Brooke became a prominent critic of Republican President Richard Nixon and was the first Senate Republican to call for Nixon's resignation in light of the Watergate scandal. In 1978, he ran for a third term but was defeated by Democrat Paul Tsongas. After leaving the Senate, Brooke practiced law in Washington, D.C., and was affiliated with various businesses and nonprofit organizations. He died on Jan. 3, 2015, at his home in Coral Gables, Fla., at the age of 95.

All of these men achieved unbelievable things while facing plenty of opposition. Their tireless struggles are as significant today as they were then. Without their sacrifices, there may not have been an opportunity for Barack Obama to become the first black president. We must always remember that the sufferings of others have paved the way for today’s possibilities.