Oldfield gives great detail about South Carolina lawyers in the 19th century. Biracial attorneys outnumbering black attorneys 2:1 was surprising given that the population of biracial, or mulatto people, would likely have been a significantly lower portion of the population. The author discusses how “black lawyers were an integral if subordinate part of the legal profession [in South Carolina] until well into the twentieth century” (197). Black lawyers in South Carolina faced discrimination and struggles in being able to specialize, in making a profit, and get enough cases. - Jennifer johnson
One thing that struck me about this article is how black lawyers were not allowed to advocate for black civil rights within their law professions, at risk of being taken less seriously than they already were. This reminded me of our reading and conversation about black soldiers in the Spanish American War last week, and how they sacrifice their personal and political views in efforts to only be treated equally in these spaces. –Olivia Foster
One part of this that was interesting to me was that black lawyers were not allowed to defend black rights, even though they would have been the only lawyers that understood the absence of rights that blacks had at the time. Deon Satchell
Could you imagine being a black lawyer in northern or midwestern states and volunteering to practice law in the south? The type of bravery and character one has to have is something I cannot even fathom. Even the black professor at South Carolina in the later half of the nineteenth century takes bravery and determination like something no one can even imagine. - Daniel Childers
Since working in the law field was already an honorable duty, Black lawyers were held to a much higher expectation and were not treated with the same amount of respect and seriousness. -Moe Cushing