Constance Baker Motley was devoted in her role as a Civil Rights advocate. She served as a jurist, a politician, and as a Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Constance Motley was a key strategist of the Civil Rights movement. She was a State Senator, and Borough President of Manhattan in New York City before becoming a United States Federal Judge. She was the first Black woman to argue at the Supreme Court and argued 10 landmark Civil Rights cases, winning nine. Ms. Motley was a law clerk to Thurgood Marshall, aiding him in the case Brown v. Board of Education. In 1954. She wrote the first legal brief in the groundbreaking Brown v. the Board of Education case. Motley was widely known for being a major, key figure in the Civil Rights movement. She was hired by the NAACP as a Civil Rights lawyer. She was the organization’s first female attorney. She was the lead trial attorney in significant Civil Rights cases. Constance Motley represented Dr. King and the Freedom Riders whenever they were arrested, jailed. During her career, Motley continued her Civil Rights work as an elected official. She also devoted much of her time to advocate for housing equality for majority-Black and Latino, low-income tenants.
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Church Affiliation:St. Luke's Episcopal Church
Role in the Movement:Constance Baker Motley was a key strategist of the Civil Rights Movement, and a Senator to the State of New York.
Birth Place:New Haven, CT
Born Date:September 14, 1921
Deceased Date:September 28, 2005
Place Lived as Adult:New York City, NY
Church Location:New Haven, CT