Faya Ora Rose Touré, born Rose M. Gaines, (born May 20, 1945) is an American civil rights activist and lawyer who was

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

’s first black woman judge. Henry Sanders is her husband.

Personal life

Touré was born on May 20, 1945, in

Salisbury, North Carolina Salisbury ( ) is a city in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region of North Carolina, United States; it has been the county seat of Rowan County, North Carolina, Rowan County since 1753 when its territory extended to the Mississippi River. ...

to Rev. D. A. Gaines and Ora Lee Gaines. She was graduated from George Clem High School in 1962. She was graduated ''

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

'' from

Johnson C. Smith University Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU) is a private historically black university in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SAC ...

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...

in 1966 and then from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

in 1969. Born Rose Gaines, Touré abandoned her "slave name" in 2002, and took a new name in honor of

Ahmed Sékou Touré Ahmed Sékou Touré (var. Sheku Turay or Ture; N'Ko: ; 9 January 1922 – 26 March 1984) was a Guinean political leader and African statesman who was the first president of Guinea from 1958 until his death in 1984. Touré was among the primary ...

, the first

President of Guinea This article lists the President (government title), presidents of Guinea, since the country gained independence from France in 1958 (after rejecting to join the French Community in a 1958 Guinean constitutional referendum, constitutional refer ...

. She is married to Alabama State Senator Henry Sanders. Together they have three natural born children and four foster children. She is a songwriter and playwright and hosts Faya's Fire, a weekly radio show. She is the creator of the gospel song "I'm Gonna Lift My Sister Up".

Civil rights

After Harvard, Touré went to work at the

National Welfare Rights Organization The National Welfare Rights Organization (NWRO) was an American activist organization that fought for the welfare rights of people, especially women and children. The organization had four goals: adequate income, dignity, justice, and democratic ...

and the Columbia Center on Social Welfare Policy and Law. She then went to work for the

Legal Services Corporation The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) is a publicly funded, 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation established by the United States Congress. It seeks to ensure equal access to justice under the law for all Americans by funding organizations providing c ...

before founding the law firm of Chestnut, Sanders, Sanders, Pettaway & Campbell, LLC. She worked on a number of high profile civil rights cases during her career. Touré worked on the case of Pigford v. Veneman, the largest civil rights case in history. She won more than $1 billion in damages from the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

for black farmers in the case. In 1982, the firm conducted a study of black land tenure and documented land loss by African Americans for the Department of the Agriculture's Emergency Land Fund. She founded the

National Voting Rights Museum The National Voting Rights Museum and Institute, established in 1991 and opened in 1993, is an American museum in Selma, Alabama, which honors, chronicles, collects, archives, and displays the artifacts and testimony of the activists who partici ...

, the McRae Learning Center, the Ancient Africa, Slavery and Civil War Museum, the Bridge Crossing Jubilee, the 21st Century Youth Leadership Movement, and the Black Belt Arts and Cultural Center.

Judicial career

Touré became the first African-American female judge in Alabama when she was appointed as a municipal judge in 1973. She served in this position until 1977.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toure, Faya Ora Rose Harvard Law School alumni Activists from Selma, Alabama People from Salisbury, North Carolina Johnson C. Smith University alumni American women judges African-American judges Alabama state court judges 1945 births Living people 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women

Personal life

Civil rights

Judicial career

See also

References