10 thinkers, books, and ideas connected to this field.
Barbara Grutter was a white Michigan applicant who sued the University of Michigan Law School, leading to the landmark Supreme Court case Grutter v. Bollinger (2003).
Cheryl Hopwood was a white Texas applicant who successfully sued the University of Texas Law School, arguing its race-conscious admissions program violated the Equal Protection Clause.
American educator — President of UMBC (University of Maryland Baltimore County) for 30 years (1992–2022) — civil rights activist who marched with Martin Luther King at age 12 — who transformed UMBC into the #1 producer of Black undergraduates who go on to earn PhDs in STEM.
American novelist — author of To Kill a Mockingbird — Pulitzer Prize 1961 — who published one novel (plus Go Set a Watchman) and created the most widely read American novel about racial injustice.
American political activist and co-founder with Bobby Seale of the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense in 1966, who combined Marxist-Leninist ideology with community programs and armed self-defense.
Jennifer Gratz was a white Michigan applicant who sued the University of Michigan's undergraduate admissions program, leading to Gratz v. Bollinger (2003).
36th American President whose Great Society legislation (Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act, Medicare, Medicaid) represented the most ambitious domestic policy program since the New Deal — before the Vietnam War consumed his presidency.
Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Baptist minister and civil rights leader who led the nonviolent movement for racial equality in the United States.
American poet and memoirist — author of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings — Civil Rights activist — Presidential Medal of Freedom — who created the modern African-American memoir and is the most quoted American poet.
Malcolm X's 1965 autobiography as told to Alex Haley — covering his childhood poverty, criminal life, conversion to Islam in prison, rise in the Nation of Islam, break with Elijah Muhammad, pilgrimage to Mecca, and evolving views on race before his assassination.