[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 12] [Extensions of Remarks] [Page 16541] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]IN TRIBUTE TO CORA WALKER: LAWYER WHO BROKE RACIAL GROUND ______ HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL of new york in the house of representatives Friday, July 28, 2006 Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Cora Walker, a just woman whose sincere determination and resolve not only helped change the way law became practiced in New York but also helped diversify its practitioners. Ms. Cora Walker who is recognized as being one of the first black women to practice law in the state of New York, succumbed to cancer at her Manhattan home on July 20, 2006. As a living example of an individual who defied the odds, Ms. Walker walked the path less traveled, opening it up for many others to follow. Born in Charlotte in 1922, to William and Benetta Jones Walker, Ms. Walker was one of 9 children. Ms. Walker's family, at that time like most Southern families, wanted a life beyond the laws of segregation and Jim Crow. Their search for the American dream carried them to the Bronx. The new life in New York, however, brought unexpected changes, the biggest one being the sudden divorce of her parents. The separation of her parents, created a financial burden for the entire family leaving her mother and her siblings dependent on public assistance. Although this incident proved to be tragic, just like the saying goes, ``only the most beautiful flowers bloom in adversity,'' Ms. Walker emerged from this hardship as the main provider and supporter of the family, eventually getting her family off of welfare. Ms. Walker earned her bachelors degree and law degree in a special 6- year program in which students earned both a bachelors and law degree. She is recognized as being the first African-American woman to graduate from the St. John's University School of Law in 1946. Recognizing the disparity between the number of black and white lawyers, Ms. Walker spent much of her career working for the National Bar Association, the organization of Black lawyers formed to support the advancement of Blacks in the progression and helped found the Associations Counsel Conference, an annual meeting that helped black lawyers cultivate relationships with corporate clients. It is through her work within this organization and others that gave her the skills to become the first woman to serve as president of the Harlem Lawyers Association. Although she was admitted to the Bar in 1947, the color of her skin still proved to be the only measure being used to judge her capabilities and worth. A woman who defied so many odds, who found the self-will within, to do the unthinkable, whose courage should have been commended, was still black. Sadly, the only position offered to her was the position to be the firms' secretary. Unwilling to write the story of a woman who came, fought the great battle and lost, she decided to re-write history with her own thoughts utilizing her own gifts. Her efforts culminated in the establishment of her own firm. Although she ran unsuccessfully for the New York Senate in 1958 and 1964, she was recognized at that time as being one of the most powerful leaders in Harlem. Her legacy rings true even today. Not only does the African American community mourn her loss, but all the lives she touched by being a symbol for justice everywhere as well feel her loss. I enter into the Congressional Record the obituary published in the New York Times on July 24, 2006. She has truly left her mark on our society and she will always be remembered for that. As the percentages of African American lawyers continue to increase across the country, we must acknowledge the pioneers whose contributions to justice and equality made the opportunities we have today a reality. [From the New York Times, July 20, 2006] Cora Walker, 84, Dies; Lawyer Who Broke Racial Ground (By Margalit Fox) Cora T. Walker, a prominent New York lawyer who nearly 60 years ago became one of the first black women to practice law in the state, died last Thursday at her home in Manhattan. She was 84. The cause was cancer, said her son Lawrence R. Bailey Jr., a lawyer, who practiced with his mother for many years. For decades, Ms. Walker ran a private practice in Harlem, first on 125th Street and later from a restored brownstone at 270 Lenox Avenue. From 1976 until her retirement in 1999, she was the senior partner in Walker & Bailey, one of the city's few black law firms, which she established with her son. The firm's practice eventually included corporate clients like Conrail, the Ford Motor Company, Texas Instruments and Kentucky Fried Chicken. But Ms. Walker continued drawing up wills and preparing personal-injury claims for the men and women she described as the ``plain, ordinary, not elegant people'' of her Harlem community. Active in Republican politics, Ms. Walker ran unsuccessfully for the New York State Senate in 1958 and 1964. In 1970, The New York Times included her--the only woman--on a list of the most powerful leaders in Harlem. Cora Thomasina Walker was born on June 20, 1922, in Charlotte, N.C., one of nine children of William and Benetta Jones Walker. The family moved to the Bronx when she was a child. When she was an adolescent, her parents separated, leaving her, her mother and her siblings dependent on public assistance. After graduating from James Monroe High School in the Bronx, Ms. Walker promptly informed the Welfare Department that their help was no longer required: she would support the family. She took a night job as a teletype operator with Western Union and also sold Christmas cards. At the same time, Ms. Walker was enrolled at St. John's University, then in Brooklyn, in a special six-year program in which students earned both a bachelor's degree and a law degree. She received a bachelor's degree in accounting from St. John's in 1945 and a law degree the next year. For much of her career, Ms. Walker was active in the National Bar Association, a historically black organization. She helped found the association's Corporate Counsel Conference, an annual meeting sponsored by its commercial law section. Begun in 1988, the conference helps black lawyers cultivate relationships with corporate clients. In the 1960s, Ms. Walker became the first woman to serve as president of the Harlem Lawyers Association. Ms. Walker's marriage, to Lawrence R. Bailey Sr., a lawyer, ended in divorce. In addition to her son Lawrence Jr., of the Bronx, she is survived by another son, Bruce E. Bailey, a physician, of Norwich, Conn.; a sister, Danetta Black, formerly of White Plains; and three grandchildren. In 1947, when Ms. Walker was admitted to the New York bar, she found the doors of the city's law firms tightly shut. (One firm relented and offered her a position--as a secretary.) So she struck out on her own. Her first client was an undertaker, for whom she did collections. Before long, by dint of reading self-improvement books, Ms. Walker had learned to ``join everything, give everybody a card, join a political club,'' as she told The New York Times in 1989. In 1999, the New York County Lawyers' Association installed a plaque outside the Lenox Avenue brownstone where Ms. Walker had her office, commemorating her half-century in the law. The building has since been sold, her son said, and the plaque is now gone. ____________________