Death of note.

[jaysunb]

Longtime Tennessee civil rights lawyer dies at 86


NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — George Barrett, a longtime Tennessee civil rights lawyer known for handling a case that ultimately desegregated the state's public colleges and universities, has died. He was 86.
Barrett died Tuesday at a hospital, several partners of his Nashville-based law firm told The Associated Press.

In a career that spanned more than 50 years, Barrett not only handled numerous civil rights cases, he also represented corporate whistleblowers, fought for labor rights and tackled securities fraud, his partners said.

He is perhaps best known as the attorney who filed a lawsuit in 1968 for then-Tennessee State University instructor Rita Geier, who accused the state of operating a dual system of higher education for minorities.

Geier, then 23, filed the lawsuit over the University of Tennessee's plans to develop a Nashville campus. She feared UT-Nashville would become a predominantly white school and that historically black Tennessee State would suffer. The case dragged on for 38 years, and the state ultimately agreed to provide millions of dollars to diversify public colleges and universities.
http://news.yahoo.com/longtime-tennessee-civil-rights-lawyer-dies-86-034927401.html


Just as Atticus Finch, in, To Kill A Mockingbird, fought on principle, so too did George Barrett. It took a while but in the end it was another small step toward equality.

[Cha]

1. Thank you for the news, jay..

RIP George Barrett~

[JustAnotherGen]

2. Thanks

This was an amazing man!

A candle for someone who fought the good fight on education!

[MADem]

3. He was a badass.

Barrett cut a self-assured figure in Nashville's legal community for more than 50 years after graduating from Vanderbilt University Law School in 1957 and taking a job at the law firm of Cecil Branstetter, who was becoming one of the South's leading labor lawyers. Routinely calling himself "The Citizen," Barrett took on authority figures with an attitude of righteous indignation whenever he thought they were abusing their power.

"I don't know if another lawyer in Nashville ever practiced law at such a high level for so many decades and had such an impact," said David Garrison, a law partner at Barrett Johnston Martin & Garrison who started working with Barrett about 10 years ago.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/08/26/civil-rights-lawyer-barrett-dies/14665453/