Margaret A. Burnham (born December 28, 1944)
is an American lawyer and academic who is a professor at the
Northeastern University School of Law
Northeastern University School of Law (NUSL) is the law school of Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded as an evening program to meet the needs of its local community, NUSL is nationally recognized for its cooperative legal ed ...
and the founder of the
Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project The Civil Rights Restorative Justice Project is an initiative by the Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, Massachusetts, to document every racially motivated killing in the Southern United States, American South between 1930 and 1970. Th ...
. She is a
Senate-confirmed nominee to be a member of the
Civil Rights Cold Case Records Review Board.
Early life and education
Burnham was born in
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
in 1944. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from
Tougaloo College
Tougaloo College is a private historically black college in the Tougaloo area of Jackson, Mississippi. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). It was originally established in 1869 by New Yo ...
and a Bachelor of Laws from the
University of Pennsylvania Law School
The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (also known as Penn Law or Penn Carey Law) is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is among the most selective and olde ...
.
Career
Burnham's legal practice included serving as an attorney with the
NAACP Legal Defense Fund
The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (NAACP LDF, the Legal Defense Fund, or LDF) is a leading United States civil rights organization and law firm based in New York City.
LDF is wholly independent and separate from the NAACP. Altho ...
.
[
In 1970, Burnham worked with ]CPUSA
The Communist Party USA, officially the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), is a communist party in the United States which was established in 1919 after a split in the Socialist Party of America following the Russian Revo ...
lawyer John Abt
John Jacob Abt (May 1, 1904 – August 10, 1991) was an American lawyer and politician, who spent most of his career as chief counsel to the Communist Party USA (CPUSA) and was a member of the Communist Party and the Soviet spy network "Ware Gr ...
to defend Angela Davis
Angela Yvonne Davis (born January 26, 1944) is an American political activist, philosopher, academic, scholar, and author. She is a professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz. A feminist and a Marxist, Davis was a longtime member of ...
, her friend since childhood, and later wrote the foreword to Abt's memoir.[
]
In 1977, she became the first female African American Judge in Massachusetts, serving as an Associate Justice of the Boston Municipal Court
The Boston Municipal Court (BMC), officially the Boston Municipal Court Department of the Trial Court, is a department of the Trial Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The court hears criminal, civil, mental health, restr ...
until 1982.Franklin County, Mississippi
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 8,118, making it the fourth-least populous county in Mississippi. Its county seat is Meadville. The county was formed on December 2 ...
for their law-enforcement agents' involvement in the 1964 Ku Klux Klan
The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and ...
kidnapping, torture and killing of two 19-year-olds, Henry Dee and Charles Eddie Moore.
On June 11, 2021, President Joe Biden nominated Burnham to be a member of the Civil Rights Cold Case Records Review Board. The Senate's Homeland Security committee held hearings on Burnham's nomination on January 13, 2022. The committee favorably reported her nomination on February 2, 2022. Burnham was officially confirmed by the entire Senate via voice vote
In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by responding vo ...
on February 17, 2022.
Burnham has authored and coauthored numerous articles; and one book, ''By Hands Now Known'', which received a positive review in ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''.
Personal life
Burnham's father was Louis E. Burnham
Louis Everett Burnham (September 29, 1915 – February 12, 1960) was an African-American Activism, activist and journalist. From his college days, and continuing through adulthood, he was involved in activities emphasizing racial equality, throug ...
, an activist and journalist. Her sister, Linda Burnham
Linda Burnham (born 1948) is an American journalist, activist, and leader in women's rights movements, particularly with organizations and projects serving and advocating for women of color.
Early life and family
Burnham was born in 1948, to par ...
, is also an activist and journalist. Her brother, Charles Burnham Charles Burnham may refer to:
* Charles Burnham (politician) (1847–1908), American manufacturer and politician in the Wisconsin State Assembly
* Charles Burnham (geneticist) (died 1995), American plant geneticist
* Charles Burnham (musician)
...
, is a violinist and composer. She is also related to Forbes Burnham
Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham (20 February 1923 – 6 August 1985) was a Guyanese politician and the leader of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana from 1964 until his death in 1985. He served as Prime Minister from 1964 to 1980 and then as its f ...
, the second president of Guyana
The president of Guyana is the head of state and the head of government of Guyana, as well as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the Republic, according to the Constitution of Guyana. The president is also the chancellor of the Ord ...
.
See also
*List of African-American jurists
This list includes individuals self-identified as African Americans who have made prominent contributions to the field of law in the United States, especially as eminent judges or legal scholars. Individuals who may have obtained law degrees or ...
*List of first women lawyers and judges in Massachusetts
This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Massachusetts. It includes the year in which the women were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are women who achieved other distinctions such becoming the first in t ...
References
External links
*
Living people
Northeastern University School of Law faculty
American civil rights lawyers
1944 births
People from Birmingham, Alabama
Tougaloo College alumni
University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni
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