People's Lawyers: Crusaders for Justice in American History

Book Description
In short biographical chapters the authors tell the story of ten crusading lawyers from throughout America's history who, through their moral stance, intellectual integrity, and sheer brialliance, made use of the law to fight injustice in American society. Each chapter includes a biography of the lawyer's life and career, a chronology of key events, a review of major cases prosecuted by the lawyer, and an annotated bibliography.

From the Inside Flap
"In this era of corporate greed and attorney perfidy, People's Lawyers is a timely reminder of those men and women who were driven by a passion for justice and determination to fulfill the promise of equal justice under law. This fascinating account of the truly heroic members of the legal community, who risked their reputations, liberty, and lives for justice, belongs in every library and should be mandatory reading in every law school classroom. While most lawyers have cared only for the size of the fee, People's Lawyers tells the story of that tiny handful of attorneys who dedicated their lives to the defense of the oppressed, ennobling our profession and writing on the historical page of the struggle for justice. A book about lawyers that makes you say 'I want to be like those people. I want to do those things.'" -- Ronald L. Kuby, attorney and co-host, The Curtis and Kuby Show, WABC Radio and MSNBC

About the Author
Diana Klebanow studied at Bard College, graduated with honors in history from Brooklyn College, and received a Ph.D. in history from New York University. She is an adjunct professor of political science at the Brooklyn Center of Long Island University and teaches in the law program at August Martin High School in Jamaica, New York. Franklin L. Jonas received a Ph.D. in history from New York University and has taught at the college level for nearly four decades. He has specialized in American history, but has taught a wide variety of courses, including courses in political science, public policy, and sociology. He has been teaching at the Brooklyn Center of Long Island University since 1965.


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Professors Klebanow and Jonas (Long Island Univ.) have taken ten notable civil rights lawyers and written a lively, balanced account of their lives. Starting with the first female attorney to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court (Belva A. Lockwood in 1879) and ending with an attorney who has tackled the Ku Klux Klan (Morris Dees), the authors provide a chronology of each attorney's life, a well-footnoted biography, a description of selected cases, and an annotated bibliography. What distinguishes this collection is the authors' rich collection of anecdotes about their subjects. For example, they recount that William Kunstler came from an eccentric family, never made much money, and relished his role as "attorney for the despised." Similarly, Ralph Nader, bored to death at Harvard Law School, would slip off to Mexico, return with a deep tan, and cram for exams. Each chapter has a section that explains the subject's significance as a civil rights lawyer. The authors should be commended for bringing to life their ten favorite civil rights lawyers and explaining the significance of the major cases in which they were involved. For all collections.-Harry Charles, Attorney at Law, St. Louis Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.


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