Page 9 - front page_Neat

HISTORY AND MISSON

Who was D. Augustus Straker

The D. Augustus Straker Bar Association was formed on October 4, 1990, as a special purpose bar
association recognized by the State Bar of Michigan. It is also an affiliate of the National Bar
Association. Membership includes a racially diverse coalition of lawyers, judges, in-house
counsel and other legal professionals, with a particular focus on attorneys who live, work, or
practice in Oakland County, Michigan.

The mission of the D. Augustus Straker Bar Association is to increase minority representation in
the legal profession, support and encourage legal practice opportunities for minorities, and
facilitate equal justice for all citizens.

By Gibson, J. W. (John William) (b. 1841) - Schomburg General
Research and Reference Division, The New York Public Library. (1903
- 1902). David Augustus Straker.

WHO WAS D. AUGUSTUS STRAKER?
The D. Augustus Straker Bar Association is named in
honor of D. Augustus Straker, the pioneering African-
American attorney, author and jurist. He was born in
Bridgetown, Barbados, in the West Indies. As a young
man, Straker studied philosophy, French, and Latin. He
later came to the United States to educate former slaves and
received his law degree from Howard University in 1871.
In 1875, after working for the United States Department of
Treasury, Straker was appointed an Inspector of Customs at
Columbia, South Carolina.

In 1876, he was elected to the South Carolina legislature and
re-elected twice thereafter. Later, Straker became the Dean
of Law at Allen University, a small African American institution located in Columbia, South
Carolina.After his tenure at Allen University, Straker relocated to Detroit to practice law. In the
course of his practice, Straker became the first African-American attorney to appear before the
Michigan Supreme Court. In Ferguson v Gies, 82 Mich 358 (1890), Straker successfully argued
that the "separate but equal" doctrine was unconstitutional under Michigan law. The unanimous
decision was remarkable given the doctrine's rapidly rising tide which reached its epic three years
later in the United States Supreme Court decision in Plessey v Ferguson, 163 US 537 (1893). Gies
has come to be known as Michigan's "Great Civil Rights Case." Gies, which was decided on
October 10, 1890, actually preceded by some 64 years the landmark United States Supreme Court
decision in Brown v Board of Education which ushered in the modern civil rights era. A few years
after the Gies decision, Straker was elected the first African-American jurist in Michigan. In 1892,
he became a Wayne County Circuit Court Commissioner. He served two terms. Clearly,
Michigan's civil rights heritage owes much to the memory of D. Augustus Straker. In choosing his
name, the D. Augustus Straker Bar Association seeks to honor D. Augustus Straker and his
dedication to the practice of law. More information can be found in the Michigan Bar Journal article
linked HERE (Posted with permission from the January 2015 issue of the Michigan Bar Journal).