Occupation-Attorney
Thomas Berkley (1915–2001)
Attorney, newspaper publisher, and world-class athlete Thomas Lucius Berkley was born Thomas Lucius Berkley on August 9, 1915, in DuQuoin,...
James W. Holley III (1926-2012)
James W. Holley III was the first African American mayor of his hometown, Portsmouth, Virginia. He was born in Portsmouth...
Sharon Y. Bowen (1956- )
Sharon Y. Bowen, the first Black woman to head the New York Stock Exchange, was born on July 23, 1956,...
Robert Charles O’Hara Benjamin (1855-1900)
Robert Charles O’Hara Benjamin, also known as R.C.O. Benjamin, was a Caribbean-born political activist, newspaper editor, minister, poet, teacher, author,...
Jena Six (2006)
The case of the Jena Six exposed racial injustice and inequality following an incident involving six male African American teenagers....
Belford Vance Lawson Jr. (1901-1985)
Belford Vance Lawson Jr. was the first African American attorney to win a Supreme Court case. He was born on...
Eileen Ramona Petersen (1937-2023)
Judge Eileen R. Petersen, an advocate for women’s and children’s rights, was born on April 18, 1937, in Christiansted, Virgin...
Raymond Lawrence Finch (1940-2023)
Raymond Lawrence Finch, a Federal District Court and contributor to the development of the Virgin Islands Legal System was born...
Jennifer Leigh McClellan (1972-)
On March 7, 2023, Jennifer Leigh McClellan was sworn in as the U.S. representative for Virginia’s 4th congressional district. The...
