The Movement Begins

Thurgood Marshall

One group that fought for equality is the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The NAACP was founded in 1909. Their goal was to obtain equal rights for all people and to eliminate racial hatred and discrimination.

The leader of the NAACP’s efforts to end segregation was their top lawyer, Thurgood Marshall. He used the law to fight injustice against African Americans. Marshall argued thirty-two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court during his career, and he won twenty-nine of them. Some say that Marshall did more than any other individual to win civil rights for African Americans.

Marshall was born in Maryland in 1908. He was raised in a proud middle-class family. Smart and hard working, he was a fine student. Marshall went to college and later attended law school at Howard University in Washington, DC. Marshall graduated in 1933, first in his class.

Most of Marshall’s clients were poor. Some couldn’t even pay anything, but Marshall worked hard for them anyway. He usually won his cases. He became known as the “little man’s lawyer.” Marshall had a good sense of humor. He enjoyed jokes and often used humor to help him get through hard times.

Thurgood Marshall stands in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1954. Thirteen years later, he became the nation’s first African American Supreme Court justice.

Thurgood Marshall stands in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1954. Thirteen years later, he became the nation’s first African American Supreme Court justice.

In Other Words

  • eliminate end

  • injustice unfair treatment

  • individual person

  • the little man’s lawyer a lawyer who helped the poor

  • hard times bad experiences

Government Background

The U.S. Supreme Court is the most important court in the nation. It has power over every court in each state. The U.S. Supreme Court is led by the Chief Justice of the United States, or the head of the court, and eight justices.