D. Augustus Straker
D. Augustus Straker was a black lawyer and jurist. He was born in Bridgetown, Barbados and emigrated to the United States to educate former slaves. He received his law degree from Howard University in 1871. He later moved to Detroit, Michigan, where he became the first black lawyer to appear before the Michigan Supreme Court. In 1890, Straker argued that the doctrine of "separate but equal" was unconstitutional according to Michigan law.[1] Straker was one of the 56 prominent Detroit residents invited to contribute a letter to the Detroit Century Box, a time capsule organized by then-mayor William C. Maybury and sealed on December 31, 1900. [2][3] It was opened on December 31, 2000. The most thorough study of Straker is a 1974 dissertation: Dorothy Drinkard Hawkshawe, “David Augustus Straker, Black Lawyer and Reconstruction Politician, 1842-1908" (PhD Diss., Catholic University of American, 1974).
References
- ↑ "Who is D. Augustus Straker?" D. Augustus Straker Bar Association. Retrieved August 13, 2013
- ↑ Rosalie E. Dunbar, "Through a time capsule, the past speaks to the present" Christian Science Sentinel (March 19, 2001). Retrieved August 13, 2013 (subscription required)
- ↑ "Future Friday: Century Box Prophecies" Detroit Historical Society. Retrieved August 13, 2013