Tomiko Brown-Nagin will lead a discussion entitled, “Civil Rights Queen: Constance Baker Motley and the Struggle for Equality,” as the keynote speaker at the University of Houston Law Center’s annual Yale L. Rosenberg Memorial Lecture. The lecture will be held virtually through Zoom and will begin at 6:30 p.m. Central on Tuesday, March 22.
Brown-Nagin serves as the Dean of the Radcliffe Institute, the Daniel P.S. Paul Professor of Constitutional Law at Harvard Law School and a member of the History Department at the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences. In her latest book, she explores the life and times of Constance Baker Motley, a pathbreaking lawyer, politician, and judge who was a prominent figure in the civil rights movement.
UH Law Center Dean Leonard M. Baynes noted, “The Yale Rosenberg Lecture is the UH Law Center’s most prestigious speaker series named after the trailblazing Law Center Professor Yale Rosenberg. I am delighted that we are able to bring an academic scholar and visionary of the caliber of Dean Tomiko Brown-Nagin of the Radcliff Institute and Harvard Law School to our campus. At the Law Center, we aim to focus on contemporary issues of the day such as the conversation about appointing the first African American woman to the U.S. Supreme Court and how that may resonate with the trailblazing career and confirmation of Judge Constance Baker Motley who when she was confirmed in 1966 was the first African American woman to serve as a U.S. federal judge.”
An award-winning legal historian and an expert in constitutional law and education law and policy, Brown-Nagin is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Law Institute, and the American Philosophical Society, a fellow of the American Bar Foundation, and a distinguished lecturer for the Organization of American Historians. A frequent lecturer and media commentator about issues in law, history and higher education, Brown-Nagin has published articles and book chapters on a wide range of topics, including the Supreme Court’s equal protection jurisprudence, civil rights law and history, the Affordable Care Act, and education reform. Her 2011 book, “Courage to Dissent: Atlanta and the Long History of the Civil Rights Movement “(Oxford), won six awards, including the Bancroft Prize in U.S. History.
About the University of Houston Law Center
The University of Houston Law Center (UHLC) is a dynamic, top tier law school located in the nation’s 4th largest city. UHLC’s Health Law, Intellectual Property Law, and Part-time programs rank in the U.S. News Top 10. It awards Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D.) and Master of Laws (LL.M.) degrees, through its academic branch, the College of Law. The Law Center is more than just a law school. It is a powerful hub of intellectual activity with more than 15 centers and institutes which fuel its educational mission and national reputation. UHLC is fully accredited by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools.
About the University of Houston
The University of Houston is a Carnegie-designated Tier One public research university recognized with a Phi Beta Kappa chapter for excellence in undergraduate education. UH serves the globally competitive Houston and Gulf Coast Region by providing world-class faculty, experiential learning and strategic industry partnerships. Located in the nation’s fourth-largest city and one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse regions in the country, UH is a federally designated Hispanic- and Asian-American-Serving institution with enrollment of more than 47,000 students.
About Yale L. Rosenberg
The Yale L. Rosenberg Memorial Fund was established to fund a student-writing prize and to bring distinguished speakers to the Law Center. Rosenberg joined the University of Houston Law Center faculty in 1972 after a distinguished career in government. His teaching of Civil Procedure, Federal Jurisdiction, Professional Responsibility, and Jewish Law earned him the UH Teaching Excellence Award in 2000. An award-winning scholar, Rosenberg has been called “America’s prophet” for his analysis of the decline of federal habeas corpus. An alumnus of Rice University, he graduated from New York University Law School in 1964. Past Rosenberg speakers have included Samuel L. Levine, Joshua Dressler, David Dow, Cornell Brooks, Renee Knake Jefferson, Gabriel “Jack” Chin, Tanya Kateri Hernandez, and Nelson Tebbe.
The authored article shared with Prittle Prattle News exclusively
