ILJS honors the life of one of the most influential civil rights attorneys in U.S. history
Kim Chaudoin | 615.966.6494 |
More than 250 judges, attorneys, elected officials, college presidents, ministers, faculty, students and friends gathered Saturday evening, Nov. 12, at Nashville’s Frist Center for the Visual Arts to celebrate the naming of Lipscomb University’s Institute for Law, Justice & Society in honor of history-making civil rights attorney Fred D. Gray.
The Fred D. Gray Institute for Law, Justice & Society at Lipscomb University recognizes Gray’s stated lifelong commitment to “eradicate racism” through the law, beginning with his work at the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. Gray began his legal career as a sole practitioner and less than a year out of law school at age 24, he represented Rosa Parks after she refused to give up her seat on a city bus, which began the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Gray was also Martin Luther King Jr.’s first civil rights lawyer, represented the Freedom Riders and filed the lawsuits that desegregated Alabama schools.
“Tonight we come together after several months of planning and years of work for this particular naming moment,” Lipscomb President L. Randolph Lowry told the crowd. “But it is based on a lifetime of contribution and service. We thank you for joining us tonight on what we consider to be a historic occasion. Thank you, Dr. Gray, for all that you have meant to us and have meant to me over the last several years.”
Nashville attorney Bob Wood, a member of the Lipscomb Board of Trustees, opened the evening with remarks and Sonnye Dixon, lead pastor of Hobson United Methodist Church offered the invocation.
Judge Richard H. Dinkins of the Tennessee Court of Appeals said his job has been made much easier “because of the path that Fred Gray laid.”
“Most importantly, Dr. Gray is a humble servant. He was called to be a minister. He was called to be a lawyer. He got the call when he heard, ‘Whom shall I send?’ in Isaiah and responded with ‘Here I am, send me.’ I want to commend Lipscomb University for establishing the Institute for Law, Justice & Society. I speaks so highly of the institution to honor Dr. Gray in this fashion. You shot the moon with this.”
“It’s amazing to me as a lawyer and now as a judge,” said Justice Cornelia A. Clark of the Tennessee Supreme Court, “when I look at the life of Fred Gray I see the history of the law through the Civil Rights Movement in the 20th Century. His accomplishments are a summary of the accomplishments of the movement and therefore of all of us. Some people have said that justice will not be fully served until those who are unaffected by injustice are as outraged as those who are affected. That’s one of the things that attorney and Dr. Fred Gray taught us in his years of serving our country by focusing on lives. He was able to bring the stories of those affected to life in the courts, and in that way allowed the judges who heard them to becomes outraged as if they saw them.”
Congressman Jim Cooper said he was “glad to be a part of perhaps one of the most exciting events in Lipscomb University history.”
“This is an amazing evening,” he said, noting those speaking during the event. “We have a lot of work to do in this country, but Lipscomb is a great place to start. It warms my heart to see Lipscomb to acknowledge its own son, Attorney Gray.”
Cooper commended Gray for returning to his native Alabama after graduating from Case Western Reserve law school. “He did the right thing not because it was home, but because that’s he was needed most,” said Cooper. “He has an incredible story that the whole nation and world needs to know about. We hear about unsung heroes. If there’s ever an unsung hero it is Fred Gray. He went home to South Alabama. He not only endured, he prevailed.”
James E.K. Hildreth, president and chief executive officer of Meharry Medical College, said he greatly admires Gray for his work relating to the Tuskegee syphilis experiment, a 40-years study in which hundreds of African American male citizens with syphilis were the subject of an experiment led by the U.S. Public Health Service seeking to look at the effects of the disease on a population. The men weren't told of the study nor given appropriate medical treatment, and thus were left untreated for decades. Gray filed a suit on the men's behalf, receiving millions of dollars in a 1975 settlement and proper care for his surviving clients. In 1997 President Bill Clinton offered an apology on the government's behalf and an acknowledgment of what had happened.
“I must say as an American citizen and physician that this is embarrassing and shameful that this study took place,” said Hildreth, a physician and biomedical scientist. “One of the things that I most admire about Dr. Gray is that he found the courage to speak the truth and do the right thing at the right time for the right reason. Dr. Gray, I’m in awe of your work, and I’m going to struggle to find the courage to do as you’ve done—to speak the truth and to stand up against injustice wherever it might be. Thank you so much for all you’ve done, and I’m your biggest fan.”
Randy Spivey is academic director for the Fred D. Gray Institute for Law, Justice & Society. He recognized Gray’s family members as well as other dignitaries who were in attendance at the gathering.
“I appreciate the message that your presence here tonight sends to our students,” said Spivey. “It shows that you are interested in their future and in their work.” He also noted the tremendous barriers Gray overcame to carry out his work.
“He overcame those barriers to become a lawyer in the deeply segregated South,” said Spivey. “Once he was over those barriers, he did not simply run ahead but rather turned back to the barriers and began to systematically and methodically destroy them. Fred Gray’s work has never been easy. Mr. Gray is brilliant, he is unrelenting, he is humble, he is kind, creative and critical and is singularly focused on the goal of equality. He is a good and faithful servant for the Kingdom of God.”
Guests had an opportunity to hear Gray share stories from his legal career and "the rest of the story" about some of his most well known cases. He also shared thoughts about the recent election and the issues facing the United States today as well as his experiences during the early years of his career.
He also shared advice with students in attendance.
“Work with people,” he said. “Find people working in areas on whatever those causes are that you have. As a young lawyer I was willing to work with people in the community to solicit that help and to help me with my goals. Young lawyers who work with people, realize that you don’t know it all and that there is help out there when you need it.”
“Preserving civil rights is so important,” he continued. “The struggle continues for justice under the law. I'll be the first to tell you we have made a tremendous amount of progress made, but there is more to be done. We need all people of all races of all creeds of all colors of all religions to help solve the problems facing this country."
He encouraged the audience to “seek to instill in young people (wanting to pursue a legal career) that they have a life worth living and their dreams, too, can come true,” he said. “We must encourage young people to have an optimistic spirit, to seek help when needed, accept advice and never stop learning, never stop dreaming. Grab hold to a star and great things may happen.”
“I challenge us as we launch the Fred Gray Institute for Law, Justice & Society to help young people better be ----- themselves so they will be successful in assisting and bringing about radical reconciliation, equality and justice for all regardless of race, creed and color. Help them assist this nation in bringing about equality and justice for all under the terms and conditions of our constitution and it conforms to the instructions left to us by Jesus Christ.
In thanking the audience for the honor of the new name for Lipscomb’s law, justice and society program, Gray said it honors others as well.
“Thank you for your honor you have bestowed upon me by naming this institution after me. By honoring me you have paid honor to all of those students who attended Nashville Christian Institute, all of those clients whose cases I’ve handled—they are the ones who have made it possible for me to do what God provided me to do in helping change things,” he said.
“I pledge to you that I will continue to fight for equal justice under the law until all of God’s children are truly free with deep humility, thank you for honoring not only me but my cleints. I hope and pray that many young men and ladies will attend this institute at this university.”
Steve Joiner, dean of the College of Leadership & Professional Studies which houses the Fred Gray Institute for Law, Justice & Society, thanked Gray for his example.
“Thank you for your lifetime of work. We aspire to join you in your work in this institutions,” said Joiner. “We will use your work as a paradigm. This institute that bears your name started almost ten years ago. We are making a commitment to a new purpose and a new focus. In commitment to your legacy and partnership with us Lipscomb University we pledge to use your words and your paradigm of education to teach our students what it means to use justice to serve others. We don’t take this moment lightly. Your name sets a high standard, and we seek to aspire to that standard. We look forward to what we will learn as we push our students to learn.”
David Scobey, chairman of Lipscomb’s Board of Trustees, offered a prayer of dedication for the institute.
Grammy recognized singer-songwriter Ruby Amanfu entertained guests with several musical selections. To conclude the celebration, Amanfu was joined by students from the College of Entertainment & the Arts for a special musical finale.
For more information about the Fred D. Gray Institute for Law, Justice & Society, visit ljs.lipscomb.edu.
—Video by Josh Shaw, Photos by Kristi Jones