[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 61 (Monday, April 10, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E303-E304]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CELEBRATING THE EXTRAORDINARY CAREER OF FEDERAL JUDGE U.W. CLEMON

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. TERRI A. SEWELL

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 10, 2023

  Ms. SEWELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the extraordinary 
career of a legal trailblazer, Civil Rights activist, scholar, former 
State Senator, pioneering lawmaker, and my special mentor, the 
Honorable Judge U.W. Clemon, as he celebrates his 80th birthday on 
April 9, 2023.
  A native of Alabama's 7th Congressional District, Judge Clemon was 
born to Addie and Moses Clemon in Fairfield in 1943. He began his 
education in the then-segregated Jefferson County School System, 
graduating valedictorian of Westfield High School in 1961, then 
attended Miles College.
  At Miles College, Clemon excelled in academics and student activism, 
serving as SGA President and a leading voice for civil rights on 
campus. Clemon played a pivotal role in the ``Selective Buying 
Campaign'' to boycott segregated stores in downtown Birmingham. Because 
of that boycott, a young Clemon was confronted by ``Bull'' Conner, when 
he petitioned the Birmingham Commission to remove its segregation laws. 
Clemon marched in many student demonstrations under the direction of 
Dr. King, and blazed trails, successfully desegregating the Birmingham 
Public Library.
  Upon graduating from Miles College as valedictorian of the Class of 
1965, Clemon fulfilled his childhood goal of becoming an attorney, 
receiving his law degree in 1968 from the Columbia Law School in New 
York City. While a law student, Clemon clerked at the NAACP Legal 
Defense Fund. This clerkship led to a life-long association with the 
organization as local counsel on numerous civil rights lawsuits brought 
in Alabama.
  After law school, Judge Clemon brought his immense talents back home 
to Birmingham. He spent the next 12 years as a premier civil rights 
attorney, dedicated to addressing the racial barriers against Black 
people in Alabama. Clemon was an effective fearless lawyer taking on 
Coach Paul ``Bear'' Bryant to desegregate the ``all-white'' University 
of Alabama football team, leading lawsuits against local school boards, 
large and small employers, and major corporations, including the United 
States Steel Corporation, which led to the desegregation of the 
American steel industry.
  By 1974, Judge Clemon made history as one of the first two African 
Americans elected to the Alabama State Senate since Reconstruction. 
Serving the 15th District for five years, Senator Clemon took the same 
fearless advocacy to the Alabama State Legislature, chairing two 
powerful Senate committees--Rules and Judiciary--and was an unrelenting 
critic of Governor George Wallace's stance on the death penalty and 
exclusion of African Americans from state boards and agencies.
  His successful legal career gained the attention of United States 
President Jimmy Carter, who appointed then-Senator Clemon to serve on 
the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. Ascending 
to the bench, Judge Clemon made history as Alabama's first Black 
Federal Judge in 1980 and served as Chief Judge from 1999 through 2006.
  During his almost three decades as a federal judge, Judge Clemon 
presided over numerous federal cases on a variety of issues. His 
decisions changed the face of our judiciary, and his legacy has had 
profound effects on Alabama systems and practices in housing, criminal 
justice, education, employment discrimination, and environmental 
injustices changing and influencing the landscape of Alabama for 
generations to come.
  Judge Clemon was a highly respected jurist both inside and outside 
the courtroom, known as a tough but fair judge, demanding that lawyers 
before him represent their clients competently and effectively. As 
Chief Judge, the Court developed a better relationship with the 
community by adopting a more juror-friendly approach, insisting on a 
diverse jury pool, prioritizing minorities in the court's workforce. In 
2009, Judge Clemon retired from the bench submitting his retirement 
letter to President Barack Obama. It was befitting that Judge Clemon 
was succeeded by his law clerk Abdul Kallon. Judge Clemon received 
numerous prestigious awards, holds three honorary degrees, two street 
names, and an elementary school in his name.
  Judge Clemon continues to be a vibrant member of the Birmingham legal 
community. Now in private practice, he continues to take on cases of 
the underrepresented, vulnerable, and underserved. A man of faith, 
Judge Clemon served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees for his home 
church Jones Chapel AME Church and is a current member of the Sixth 
Avenue Church, where he serves as a deacon. Judge Clemon is a loving 
and proud husband of Mrs. Barbara L. Clemon for over fifty-five years 
and the doting father to their daughter Michelle who is a lawyer in 
Birmingham, following in his footsteps as a graduate of Columbia Law 
School, and his son Isaac who is a musician in New York City.
  On a personal note, Judge U.W. Clemon is a special mentor to me, a 
trusted advisor and loving father figure. My most formative legal 
experience was serving as a law clerk for Judge Clemon after graduating 
from law school in 1992. I learned more about the practice of law and 
saw first-hand what ``justice'' looks like by witnessing him in the 
courtroom. Sitting with him in his chamber was always an educational 
experience. The Judge tested my knowledge, stretched my legal acumen, 
challenged my moral values, and inspired me to

[[Page E304]]

think and be a better lawyer and person. There is not a major life 
decision that I made that I didn't get his wise counsel and advise 
including running for Congress. I know that I now serve as Alabama's 
first Black Congresswoman because I was blessed by the transformative 
experience of serving as a law clerk to Alabama's first Black Federal 
Judge. To say ``thank you'' to him seems woefully inadequate.
  As we celebrate his 80th birthday, I want to express my sincere 
gratitude to Judge Clemon for all the guidance he has given me in my 
life's journey, and I want to thank Mrs. Barbara and Michelle for 
sharing the Judge with me. His extraordinary legal career is a 
testament to the power of one person to change the world. Through his 
hard work, brilliant mind, fearless determination, and thoughtful legal 
decisions, he has changed lives. May the seeds he has sown into so many 
of us, continue to bear the fruit of change. Congratulations for a life 
well led. Happy 80th Birthday. Here's to many more years.
  On behalf of Alabama's 7th Congressional District, I ask my 
colleagues to join me in wishing Happy Birthday and to celebrate the 
extraordinary career of an exceptional jurist, lawmaker, and public 
servant, Judge U.W. Clemon, for his decades of service to the State of 
Alabama and this Nation.

                          ____________________