A LOOK BACK: KAPPA HISTORY
as the first Black U.S. Dis- trict Judge in history. Parsons responded, in the manner of a naval officer, “‘Aye, aye, sir,’….and he said, ‘Carry on’….” Kennedy’s nomination of Parsons, the great-grandson of enslaved people, as United States District Court Judge for Northern Illinois; made him the first Black district court judge in the continen- tal United States with life tenure. Prior to his appoint-
ment, Blacks had been ap- pointed solely to fixed judicial terms throughout the United States Federal Courts. When Parsons appeared before the Senate subcommittee, he was confirmed by the Senate without a dissenting vote 12 days later. On September 23, 1961, the Chicago (IL) Alumni Chapter hosted a testimonial dinner at the Sherman Ho-
His studies were interrupted by WWII, where he served four years in the Navy Re- serves (B6 Program) and mar- ried his wife, Amy. Following the war, Parsons went on to the University of Chicago on the G.I. Bill and ultimately earned his M.A. in political science in 1946 and Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) degree in 1949. The following two years, Parsons practiced law in part- nership with the law firm of Gassaway, Crosson, Turner & Parsons, followed by a consti- tutional law teaching position at John Marshall Law School. While in Chicago, he was ap- pointed assistant corporation counsel, followed by Assistant U. S. Attorney, where he suc- cessfully tried the first federal prosecution of syndicate crime figures in Chicago by means other than through income tax matters. Parsons’ notoriety earned him a position as Cook County Superior Court Judge, which led to the prestigious position as a U.S. District Court Judge. Pinnacle of Success Parsons’ recollection of the historic August 1961 phone call: “I just grabbed the phone and started blessing [Amy] out for waking me up. When I paused, this voice came on the phone and said, ‘But, this is President Kennedy’…” Ken- nedy went on to explain that he wanted to appoint him to
Publishing achievement for more than 100 years
THE JOURNAL FALL 2017 | 217
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter