Judge Constance Baker Motley changed the course of history forever. In addition to serving in many positions and championing justice and equality throughout her life, she made many legal landmarks possible. Learn more about Judge Motley’s life and phenomenal contributions below.
Constance Baker was born to working-class immigrant parents from Nevis, a Caribbean island, on September 14, 1921. Growing up, Baker’s mother introduced her to Black history. Due to adversities, Baker was unable to attend college after she graduated from integrated Hillhouse High School in 1939. However, she continued to get involved in her hometown, New Haven, Connecticut, and also worked for the National Youth Administration. After being impressed by Constance Baker’s eloquent speech at a New Haven Community Center, philanthropist Clarence W. Blakeslee offered to pay tuition for her. That’s how Baker’s journey to pursue higher education finally unfolded.
With Blakeslee’s generous help, Baker attended Fisk University, an HBCU in Tennessee. Then she transferred to New York University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1943. Baker continued to further her higher education and attained an LLB from Columbia Law School in 1946. In 1949, Constance Baker married Joel Wilson Motley.
Baker started her career at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF). She was the first female attorney at NAACP LDF. Later, in her role as the fund’s principal trial attorney, Constance Baker Motley represented Martin Luther King Jr., Reverend Ralph Abernathy, and the Freedom Riders. For almost two decades, Motley relentlessly fought to abolish racial segregation from her position at the fund. She played consequential roles in several landmark cases, such as Brown v. Board of Education, Meredith v. Fair, Blank v. Sullivan & Cromwell, Ludtke v. Kuhn, and many more. In Meredith v. Fair, Motley defended James Meredith’s right to attend the University of Mississippi, becoming the first Black woman to argue a case before the Supreme Court. Motley successfully won a total of nine out of ten civil rights cases that she argued before the SCOTUS.
Nearly after two decades-long experience at the NAACP LDF, Motley continued her fight for racial and social justice by becoming politically engaged. She was elected to the New York State Senate in 1964, making her the first Black woman to serve as a New York state senator. Motley was also the first woman to become a borough president of Manhattan. Motley was nominated to the Federal District Court for the Southern District of New York by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1966. Judge Motley became a chief judge in 1982, and later, a senior judge in 1986. Motley was the first woman as well as the first Black woman to serve in the federal judiciary. In 2001, Judge Motley was awarded the Presidential Citizens’ Medal by President Bill Clinton for her groundbreaking contributions.
From working for the desegregation of schools to housing equality, Judge Motley spent her life combating racial injustice and segregation. Judge Motley, a civil rights movement activist, died on September 28, 2005, in New York City. In her memoir, “Equal Justice Under Law: The Life of a Pioneer for Black Civil Rights and Women's Rights,” Judge Motely wrote, “I rejected the notion that my race or sex would bar my success in life.” Whether it’s her role in a courtroom or on the federal bench, Judge Motley’s legacy will live on forever.
As we remember and commemorate extraordinary Black women, who have devoted their lives to creating a more just society for women in the United States, don’t forget to register for our virtual event, Black History Month celebration, that is taking place on 2/28.