Thurgood Marshall: Supreme Court Justice (Black Americans of Achievement)

145 Pages·2004·2.92 MB·English

by  Lisa Aldred

Black Americans of Achievement
L E G A C Y E D I T I O N
Thurgood Marshall
Supreme Court Justice
Black Americans of Achievement
L E G A C Y E D I T I O N
Muhammad Ali
Frederick Douglass
W.E.B. Du Bois
Marcus Garvey
Alex Haley
Langston Hughes
Jesse Jackson
Coretta Scott King
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Malcolm X
Thurgood Marshall
Jesse Owens
Rosa Parks
Colin Powell
Sojourner Truth
Harriet Tubman
Nat Turner
Booker T. Washington
Black Americans of Achievement
L E G A C Y E D I T I O N
Thurgood Marshall
Supreme Court Justice
Lisa Aldred
With additional text written by
Heather Lehr Wagner
Consulting Editor, Revised Edition
Heather Lehr Wagner
Senior Consulting Editor, First Edition
Nathan Irvin Huggins
Director, W.E.B. Du Bois Institute
for Afro-American Research
Harvard University
COVER:Thurgood Marshall after being sworn in as a Supreme Court Justice,October 2,1967.
CHELSEA HOUSE PUBLISHERS
VP,NEWPRODUCTDEVELOPMENT Sally Cheney
DIRECTOROFPRODUCTION Kim Shinners
CREATIVEMANAGER Takeshi Takahashi
MANUFACTURINGMANAGER Diann Grasse
Staff for THURGOOD MARSHALL: SUPREME COURT JUSTICE
EXECUTIVEEDITOR Lee Marcott
ASSISTANTEDITOR Alexis Browsh
PRODUCTIONEDITOR Noelle Nardone
PHOTOEDITOR Sarah Bloom
SERIESANDCOVERDESIGNER Keith Trego
LAYOUT 21st Century Publishing and Communications,Inc.
©2005 by Chelsea House Publishers,
a subsidiary ofHaights Cross Communications.
All rights reserved.Printed and bound in the United States ofAmerica.
www.chelseahouse.com
First Printing
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Aldred,Lisa.
Thurgood Marshall/Lisa Aldred,with additional text by Heather Lehr Wagner.—Rev.ed.
p.cm.—(Black Americans ofachievement)
ISBN 0-7910-8163-X 0-7910-8337-3
1.Marshall,Thurgood,1908-1993—Juvenile literature.2.Judges—United States—Juvenile
literature.3.African American judges—Biography—Juvenile literature.4.United States.
Supreme Court—Biography—Juvenile literature.I.Marshall,Thurgood,1908–1993.
II.Wagner,Heather Lehr.III.Title.IV.Series.
KF8745.M34A43 2004
347.73'2634—dc22
2004006054
All links and web addresses were checked and verified to be correct at the time ofpublication.
Because ofthe dynamic nature ofthe web,some addresses and links may have changed
since publication and may no longer be valid.
Contents
Introduction vi
1 Equal Justice Under Law
1
2 “A Pretty Tough Guy”
11
3 The Extra Step
24
4 Fighting the Odds
37
5 “Mr. Civil Rights”
58
6 “A Long, Respectful Whistle”
80
7 Solicitor General
91
8 Supreme Court Justice
102
Chronology 120
Further Reading 122
Index 124
About the Contributors 136
Introduction
Nearly 20 years ago Chelsea House Publishers began to publish
the first volumes in the series called BLACK AMERICANS OF
ACHIEVEMENT.This series eventually numbered over a hundred
books and profiled outstanding African Americans from
many walks oflife.Today,ifyou ask school teachers and school
librarians what comes to mind when you mention Chelsea
House,many will say—“Black Americans of Achievement.”
The mix of individuals whose lives we covered was eclectic,
to say the least. Some were well known—Muhammad Ali
and Dr.Martin Luther King,Jr,for example.But others,such
as Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth, were lesser-known
figures who were introduced to modern readers through these
books. The individuals profiled were chosen for their actions,
their deeds,and ultimately their influence on the lives ofothers
and their impact on our nation as a whole. By sharing these
stories of unique Americans, we hoped to illustrate how
ordinary individuals can be transformed by extraordinary
circumstances to become people of greatness. We also hoped
that these special stories would encourage young-adult readers
to make their own contribution to a better world.Judging from
the many wonderful letters we have received about the BLACK
AMERICANS OF ACHIEVEMENT biographies over the years from
students,librarians,and teachers,they have certainly fulfilled
the goal of inspiring others!
Now, some 20 years later, we are publishing 18 volumes of
the original BLACKAMERICANSOFACHIEVEMENTseries in revised
vi
INTRODUCTION vii
editions to bring the books into the twenty-first century and make
them available to a new generation ofyoung-adult readers.The selec-
tion was based on the importance of these figures to American life
and the popularity of the original books with our readers. These
revised editions have a new full-color design and,wherever possible,
we have added color photographs. The books have new features,
including quotes from the writings and speeches of leaders and
interesting and unusual facts about their lives. The concluding
section of each book gives new emphasis to the legacy of these men
and women for the current generation of readers.
The lives of these African-American leaders are unique and
remarkable.By transcending the barriers that racism placed in their
paths, they are examples of the power and resiliency of the human
spirit and are an inspiration to readers.
We present these wonderful books to our audience for their
reading pleasure.
Lee M.Marcott
Chelsea House Publishers
August 2004

1
Equal Justice Under Law
On the cold morning of December 8, 1953, attorney Thurgood
Marshall climbed a flight ofwhite marble steps in Washington,
D.C. Halfway up the stairs, the tall, dark-skinned lawyer
glanced upward.He could see four familiar words carved across
the front of the huge white building:Equal Justice Under Law.
Marshall intended to make those words a reality.
Striding between the imposing columns, Marshall entered
the United States Supreme Court. He laid his bulging brief-
case on a table and drew a deep breath.Today,Marshall would
offer his final arguments in the most important case of his
distinguished career. If he won, the United States Supreme
Court would rule that America’s long-entrenched,segregated
school systems were unconstitutional. If he lost, most of
America’s black children would continue to receive second-
rate educations in substandard,ill-equipped schools.
1