Violette Neatley Anderson (July 16, 1882 – December 24, 1937) became the first African-American woman to practice law before the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

on January 29, 1926. She was one of the most prominent advocates of a landmark piece of legislation that helped secure rights and economic mobility for sharecroppers in the South, the Bankhead-Jones Act.

Early life and education

Violette Neatley Anderson was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1882 to a German mother and a West Indian father. She moved to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

with her family as a small child. Anderson graduated from North Division High School in 1899 and attended Chicago Athenaeum. Her interest in law began when she worked as a court reporter from 1905 to 1920. She attended Chicago Seminar of Sciences between 1912 and 1915 and went on to receive her

LL.B. A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

from Chicago Law School in 1920.

Married life

In 1903, Anderson married her first husband, Albert Johnson, however this marriage ended in divorce. She would then marry Dr. Daniel H. Anderson in December 1906, her second husband, and took his last name.

Career

Anderson opened her own private practice after graduating. She went on to serve as the first female City Prosecutor for Chicago from 1922 to 1923. On January 29, 1926, she was the first Black woman to be admitted to practice for the Supreme Court of the United States. She also operated a court reporting agency, as an assistant prosecuting attorney, and became vice-president of the Cook County Bar Association (1920-1926). Additionally, by becoming one of the first Black woman to graduate from law school in Illinois, she also became the first African-American woman admitted to practice by examination by the state board of examiners, the first African-American woman admitted to practice before the Supreme Court, the first woman to engage in her own active law practice in the state of Illinois, the first African American woman admitted to the United States District Court, Eastern Division of Illinois, the first African American woman appointed to the position of assistant prosecuting attorney in Chicago, and the first African American Vice-president of the Cook County Bar Association (1920-1926).

Bankhead–Jones Farm Tenant Act of 1937 The Bankhead–Jones Farm Tenant Act of 1937 (P.L. 75-210) was passed on July 22, 1937, and authorized acquisition by the federal government of damaged lands to rehabilitate and use them for various purposes. Most importantly, however, the law a ...

Violette Neatly Anderson was an instrumental force in testifying in favor of The Bankhead-Jones Act. Additionally, Anderson was an active force in lobbying the US Congress for support of the Bankhead-Jones Act in 1936. This Act aimed to provide sharecroppers and tenant farmers with low-interest loans to buy small farms, and was designed to transform poor agriculturalists farm workers to farm owners. This Act was eventually signed into law in 1937 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Group membership

Anderson was a member of the Federal Colored Women's Clubs and the

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV) is a nonpartisan American nonprofit political organization. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include Voter registration, registering voters, providing voter information, boosting voter turnout and adv ...

. She served as president of Friendly Big Sisters League of Chicago, the first vice-president of

Cook County Bar Association The Cook County Bar Association (CCBA), the nation's oldest association of African-American lawyers and judges, was founded in Illinois in 1914. Arkansas attorney Lloyd G. Wheeler, moved to Illinois in 1869 to practice law and he, along with 31 o ...

, and secretary of the Idlewild Lot Owners Association. She also served as an executive board member of the Chicago Council of Social Agencies.

Zeta Phi Beta Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. () is a historically African American sorority. In 1920, five women from Howard University envisioned a sorority that would raise the consciousness of their people, encourage the highest standards of scholastic achi ...

She is known for her work with the sorority

Zeta Phi Beta Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. () is a historically African American sorority. In 1920, five women from Howard University envisioned a sorority that would raise the consciousness of their people, encourage the highest standards of scholastic achi ...

. Before becoming the 8th Grand Basileus, she was a member. Before she died, she donated her summer home in Idlewild to the sorority. The organization recognizes her every year in the month of April on "Violette Anderson Day." As National President, Violette Anderson aske
Lambda Zeta chapter
in 1937 to host an upcoming national convention in Houston, Texas. No other black Greek-lettered organization (one of the Divine nine) had ever held a national convention south of the Mason-Dixon line . This was a notable success, acknowledging the fact that the meeting was held in the black business sector of downtown Houston. Meals had to be provided by the YWCA cafeteria, as there were no restaurants available to blacks in downtown Houston. She also helped house various delegates, members, and friends during the conference.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Violette Lawyers from Chicago 20th-century American women lawyers 1926 in Washington, D.C. Zeta Phi Beta 1882 births 1937 deaths 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century African-American women American people of German descent American people of West Indian descent 20th-century African-American lawyers African-American women lawyers