Walker, Cora Thomasina

Cora Thomasina Walker (1922-2006) was one of New York's first black lawyers, a militant and committed activist. She devoted part of her career to improving the living conditions of the inhabitants of the Harlem ghetto, where she lived for a long time. Born into a poor North Carolina family, she graduated in law from St John's University in 1946, and was admitted to the New York bar the following year. Despite racist and misogynist prejudice, she became a partner at Doles & Walker in 1958, before going on to become a leading figure in New York African-American law. In 1976, she founded Walker & Bailey with her son. The first woman president of the Harlem Lawyers Association (1960), the “New York Times” listed her as one of Harlem's most powerful leaders in 1970. A very active member of the National Bar Association, in 1987 she founded the Corporate Counsel Conference, which supports young law graduates from minority backgrounds.