ThoughtGallery.org > Annual Martha Rubin Conversation on Racial Equity: The Blinding of a Soldier and the Dawn of the Civil Rights Movement

Annual Martha Rubin Conversation on Racial Equity: The Blinding of a Soldier and the Dawn of the Civil Rights Movement

In February 1946, black WWII veteran Sergeant Isaac Woodard was forced off the bus he rode home from the War, arrested, beaten, and blinded in the sheriff’s custody. This act of violence propelled Judge J. Waties Waring, who presided over the criminal case brought against the sheriff, to take on landmark civil rights cases, including some that laid the groundwork for the legal milestone Brown v. Board of Education. Revisit this history with Judge Richard Gergel, who recounts this story in his book Unexampled Courage: The Blinding of Sgt. Isaac Woodard and the Awakening of President Harry S. Truman and Judge J. Waties Waring. Gergel is joined in a conversation by Woodard’s nephew and caretaker, Robert Young, and President of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Sherrilyn Ifill. Moderated by legal scholar Leon Friedman.

This is the first in a series of programs offered annually in recognition of Martha Rubin’s commitment to social justice and equity. Martha Rubin is a Trustee Emerita (in memoriam) of Brooklyn Historical Society.

For questions about this event or other inquiries, contact our Visitor Services desk at 718-222-4111, ext. 250.











When: Wed., Jan. 30, 2019 at 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Where: Center for Brooklyn History
128 Pierrepont St.
718-222-4111
Price: $10
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In February 1946, black WWII veteran Sergeant Isaac Woodard was forced off the bus he rode home from the War, arrested, beaten, and blinded in the sheriff’s custody. This act of violence propelled Judge J. Waties Waring, who presided over the criminal case brought against the sheriff, to take on landmark civil rights cases, including some that laid the groundwork for the legal milestone Brown v. Board of Education. Revisit this history with Judge Richard Gergel, who recounts this story in his book Unexampled Courage: The Blinding of Sgt. Isaac Woodard and the Awakening of President Harry S. Truman and Judge J. Waties Waring. Gergel is joined in a conversation by Woodard’s nephew and caretaker, Robert Young, and President of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Sherrilyn Ifill. Moderated by legal scholar Leon Friedman.

This is the first in a series of programs offered annually in recognition of Martha Rubin’s commitment to social justice and equity. Martha Rubin is a Trustee Emerita (in memoriam) of Brooklyn Historical Society.

For questions about this event or other inquiries, contact our Visitor Services desk at 718-222-4111, ext. 250.

Buy tickets/get more info now