Norton to Speak on 60th Anniversary of Brown v. Board

WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) this week will look back on the history and impact of Brown v. Board of Education, the seminal Supreme Court decision that desegregated public schools, leading up to its 60^th anniversary on May 17. Today, May 13 at 1:00 p.m., Norton will speak on the steps of the Supreme Court at an Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools rally on fulfilling the promise of Brown v. Board and educational justice. On Thursday, May 15 from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m., Norton will be a guest on the Diane Rehm show on WAMU 88.5 FM for a discussion on the impact and history of Brown v. Board. Norton will be joined by Isabel Wilkerson, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author; Sherrilyn Iffil, president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund; and Stan Brand, former counsel to the House of Representatives.

Norton, who was a junior at Dunbar High School in Washington, D.C. when the ruling came down in 1954, has been at the forefront of the civil rights movement since. She attended the 1957 March on Washington as a college student, was on the staff of the 1963 March on Washington as a law student, enforced both the 1963 Equal Pay Act and the 1964 Civil Rights Act as the first female chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and continues the fight for civil rights as a member of Congress.

Published: May 13, 2014