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Press Releases
Brown plaintiff attorneys Judge Robert L. Carter and William T. Coleman, Jr. NEW YORK, January 26, 2004 – The Honorable Robert L. Carter and attorney William T. Coleman, Jr., both plaintiff attorneys who assisted lead council Thurgood Marshall in the landmark Brown V. Board of Education case that struck down segregation in public education systems, will be the recipients of the 18th Annual Black History Makers Awards for outstanding achievement, presented by Associated Black Charities at its annual black-tie dinner event to be held on February 5, 2004, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York. The star-studded evening will feature remarks from Joel I. Klein, New York City Schools Chancellor, and Black History Maker Award presentations by high-profile attorney Johnny L. Cochran, Jr., and criminal law specialist Charles J. Ogletree, the Jesse Climenko Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. Dana Tyler, news anchor for New York’s WCBS-TV, will host the event, and Eugene Wade, CEO of Platform Learning, Inc., will serve as dinner chairman. Brown’s Prophecy of Progress: Education and Diversity “There have been significant indications of broader inclusion and progress toward the goal of full and equal participation by African Americans in American society as a result of the Brown decision,” said Rayton Gerald, chairman of the board of directors, Associated Black Charities. “This evening’s program will embrace and highlight that progress.” Nonetheless, added Mr. Gerald, there is still a gap between the promises offered by the 1954 decision and today’s state of affairs. “Relative to the educational, political, economic, social and legal position of the majority, the reality of completely equal standing for African Americans remains unachieved and still elusive,” he said. “One goal of Associated Black Charities is to help bridge that gap by supporting education, health and human services programs for disadvantaged youth in New York City.” 18th Annual Black History Makers Award The Honorable Robert L. Carter, one of this year’s Black History Maker honorees, was appointed to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in 1972 by President Richard M. Nixon, and assumed senior status on December 31, 1986. Judge Carter began his career at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) as a legal assistant to Thurgood Marshall. He went on to become Assistant Special Counsel and, in 1956, served as General Counsel. During his 24-year tenure at the LDF, Judge Carter won 21 of the 22 cases he argued before the Supreme Court, many of which had enormous legal and social significance, including Brown, in which he innovated the use of sociological data as a strategic component of his legal argument to establish that the “separate but equal” doctrine was unconstitutional. He also successfully argued Baker v. Carr, which established the one man-one vote principal that governs the nation’s voting rights litigation to this day. Over the course his distinguished career, Judge Carter engaged domestically and internationally in a wide variety of public, scholarly and community activities, including: Adjunct Professor at New York University Law School, Yale University and University of Michigan Law School; member of the United States delegation to the United Nation's Conference on Crime and the Treatment of Offenders in Stockholm; delegate to the World Assembly on Human Rights in Montreal; a member of the American delegation to UNESCO Conference in Addis Abba; a member of the New York State Special Commission on Attica; a member of the New York City Mayor's Judiciary Committee; and a Shikes Fellow at Harvard University. This year’s other Black History Maker honoree is William Thaddeus Coleman, Jr., Senior Partner and Senior Counselor at the international law firm of O’Melveny & Myers LLP. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Coleman served in President Gerald Ford’s cabinet as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation. In 1949, while at law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, Mr. Coleman was enlisted by Thurgood Marshall to work with the LDF, on his own time, on five cases that led to the Brown decision and was co-author of the brief presented to the court. Throughout his brilliant career in corporate and antitrust litigation, constitutional law, foreign trade, acquisitions and divestitures, he remains ardently committed to civil rights and public service, including holding advisory or consultant positions to seven U.S. Presidents including the current administration. He is a senior director of the LDF, after serving as Chairman of the Board for 20 years starting in 1977. Distinguished public service positions include: member of the United Nations General Assembly; consultant to the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency; senior consultant and senior counsel to the President’s Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy; member of the Federal Advisory Committee on the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and Co-Chairman of the Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on South Africa. Among his many honors are France’s Officer of the National Order of the Legion of Honor; the Presidential Medal of Freedom, conferred by President Clinton; and the NAACP LDF Thurgood Marshall Lifetime Achievement Award. In receiving the annual Black History Makers Award, Judge Carter and Mr. Coleman join such notable past honorees as United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, Secretary of State General Colin L. Powell, Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., former Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Maya Angelou, CBS’s Ed Bradley, Arthur Ashe and others. Feature agency: Northside Center For Child Development, Inc Dr. Clark’s “social doll” study, which involved observing and documenting the reactions of African American children to a series of black and white dolls, is generally recognized as the first conclusive evidence that the concept of “separate but equal” in fact perpetuated negative self images and feelings of inferiority among African Americans. Dr. Clark’s findings addressed both educational and emotional development of African American children, and were an important influence on the Court’s decision to overturn the Plessy v. Ferguson “separate but equal” ruling. Eight years prior to that historic decision, Dr. Clark and wife Mamie, also a psychologist, founded the Northside Center For Child Development on 110th Street. Continuing the leadership work and vision of their founders, the Northside Center today has a staff of 180, including highly accredited psychologists, psychiatrists and therapists, and grown to include a recently renovated office and satellite clinic in central Harlem on East 135th Street. Northside Center offers comprehensive, quality mental health services to more than 1,500 troubled community children and their families annually. It provides diagnostic evaluation and referral, psychotherapy and educational remediation to children and their parents, and specialized care to victims of child sexual abuse and their families. Additionally, the Center’s Therapeutic Early Childhood Center serves special needs children between the ages of 1½ and 8. “We take a holistic approach to health and human services,” says Dr. Thelma Dye, PhD, executive director at Northside Center for Child Development. “Our programs are designed to reach out to both children and family, and address medical and emotional issues with a variety of interventions that help build self esteem.” In 2004, Head Start programs will play an important role within the Northside Center’s scope of services. Two Head Start programs will provide special needs and typically developing children ages 3-to-5 with exceptional early education services. In addition, a new Early Head Start program for children under 3 years old will be the only one of its kind in Harlem. Combined, the Center’s Head Start programs will offer services to more than 175 children. Associated Black Charities' mission is to promote the delivery of quality health and human services to New York's African American community. Founded 21 years ago, ABC is a federation of 23 community-based health and human service agencies that serve more than 175,000 clients annually. The primary purpose and task of the organization is fundraising on behalf of its member agencies. In addition to financial assistance, ABC secures management and technical assistance for its members. The organization also assists member agencies to educate and promote constructive dialogue among public and corporate officials and the community at large through organizing and convening seminars and conferences, publication of treaties, and other forums about health and human service issues affecting the community. # # #
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