Constance Baker Motley made history in several ways in her legal career, but her most notable achievement took place in 1966. Baker Motley was confirmed as a U.S. District Court judge by President Lyndon B. Johnson, making her the first Black women to be federally appointed to the federal bench.
Born Constance Baker in New Haven, Connecticut, the future legal pioneer began her studies at Fisk University. As a teenager, she read a quote from President Abraham Lincoln saying that the legal profession was the hardest, which motivated her. After transferring and completing undergraduate studies at New York University, she entered and graduated with a degree from Columbia University Law School. (READ MORE)
