Groundwork: Charles Hamilton Houston and the Struggle for Civil Rights [Paperback]

Genna Rae McNeil (Author), Jr., A. Leon Higginbotham (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1984 | ISBN-10: 0812211790 | ISBN-13: 978-0812211795

"A classic. . . . [It] will make an extraordinary contribution to the improvement of race relations and the understanding of race and the American legal process."—Judge A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr., from the Foreword

Charles Hamilton Houston (1895-1950) left an indelible mark on American law and society. A brilliant lawyer and educator, he laid much of the legal foundation for the landmark civil rights decisions of the 1950s and 1960s. Many of the lawyers who won the greatest advances for civil rights in the courts, Justice Thurgood Marshall among them, were trained by Houston in his capacity as dean of the Howard University Law School. Politically Houston realized that blacks needed to develop their racial identity and also to recognize the class dimension inherent in their struggle for full civil rights as Americans.

Genna Rae McNeil is thorough and passionate in her treatment of Houston, evoking a rich family tradition as well as the courage, genius, and tenacity of a man largely responsible for the acts of "simple justice" that changed the course of American life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"McNeil has filled a vast void with this book, and students in contemporary American legal history owe her an immense debt."—Derrick A. Bell, New York University

"Thanks now to Groundwork Houston's contributions to the struggle for civil rights, and in particular his pivotal role in the effort to integrate American schools, have been documented."—New York Times

"A moving and long overdue testament of a singularly neglected giant of our history."—Ebony

"The coalescence of speaker, sentiment, and site summarizes the story that is lovingly detailed in the pages of this jewel of American legal history."—St. Louis Globe-Democrat

"The legal community is indebted to Dr. McNeil for her oustanding scholarship."—Harvard Law Review

About the Author

Genna Rae McNeil is Professor of History at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She received her Ph.D. degree from the University of Chicago.

Product Details

• Paperback: 344 pages
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press (August 1, 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812211790
• ISBN-13: 978-0812211795
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #445,409 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Early History of civil rights litigation, November 9, 2002

By 

Alan Mills (Chicago, Illinois USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Groundwork: Charles Hamilton Houston and the Struggle for Civil Rights (Paperback)

Charles Houston was the father of Brown v. Board of Ed--but tragically died in 1950, just as this historic litigation was getting underway.

It is hard to imagine any other lawyer--not to mention a Black lawyer in the 1940's who could have had a greater impact on the law as we know it. A truly remarkable human being. He not only gave birth to the NAACP's school desegregation campaign, but he also broke ground in employment discrimination, union rights, and many other developing fields of law; not to mention founding the modern day Howard Law School, which has served as the incubator for virtually all fo the civil rights litigation in the 20th Century, running a private practice, writing a regular newpaper column, and holding public office (the D.C. school board).

Ms. McRae thankfully spends only a brief time on his family history, and then gets right to the story of Houston's legal career. However, one story from Houston's formative years is instructive: When Houston served in the (segregated) Army (in WWI), he was appointed to decide the fate of a Black soldier. His investigation showed that the alleged infraction had been blown out of proportion. However, he was ordered by his superiors to find the soldier guilty, and sentence him to hard time in the brig. As a result of this experience, Houston vowed to learn the law, so that he could devote his life to ensuring that Blacks could never again be subjected to this type of injustice. He succeded beyond anyone's wildest dreams.

The moral? I suppose the racist superior officer lived to regret the day that he set Charles Houston on the path of justice--a [ath which ultimately lead to the destruction of legally enforced racial segregation in America--talk about a short sighted victory for racism!

Anyone who is interested in reading the story of a true (but underappreciated) American hero would do well to read this book!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Unknown Giant, May 16, 2011

By 

Patrick J. Wiggin "P.J. Wiggin" (Mounds View, MN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Groundwork: Charles Hamilton Houston and the Struggle for Civil Rights (Paperback)

During my student teaching experience, my students asked me to find them someone besides Martin Luther King, Jr. to study during Black History month, as they thought they had heard enough about him (unlikely, but all the same..). It took only a moment of research to discover the name Charles Hamilton Houston, who I confess I was unfamiliar with at the time. Now, having read a number of books about the work of the NAACP Legal Office and Houston himself, I can wholeheartedly recommend this biography of his life to any reader interested in learning about the man who laid out the legal strategy against legal segregation and the overturning of Plessy v. Ferguson. Genna Rae McNeil has done an outstanding and detailed study of the life and impact of Houston, and while in depth in its research, it is very readable and engaging as well. Highly recommend.