Juanita Jackson Mitchell (January 2, 1913 – July 7, 1992) is one of Maryland's most revered civil rights icons. An activist whose imprint on the struggle for civil rights is immutable, she was the first Black woman to graduate from the University of Maryland Carey School of Law, and the first African American woman to practice law in Maryland.
Her legacy will be honored when the building in Baltimore’s Marble Hill neighborhood she used as a law office during her storied career is to be renovated and preserved as a community legal center.
The Beloved Community Services Corporation, a non-profit community development group directed by Alvin Hathaway, purchased the property and is overseeing the renovation. The group recently received a $1.75 million US congressional grant to support the project.
![Former Maryland delegate Keiffer Jackson Mitchell Jr., right, along with U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, left, and Rep. Kweisi Mfume, center, announce the future home of the Juanita Jackson Mitchell Law Center in the Marble Hill historic district in the Upton neighborhood of Baltimore. Keiffer Mitchell Jr. is the grandson of Juanita Jackson Mitchell, who became the first African American woman to practice law in Maryland. (Paul Newson/The Baltimore Banner)](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6818bf4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1440x1080+0+0/resize/880x660!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F43%2F62%2F46f927e143f9b5715cf035471f69%2Fjuanita-jackson-mitchell-law-center-announcement-credit-paul-newson-baltimorebanner.png)
Joining Tom now is one of Juanita Jackson Mitchell’s sons, former Maryland State Senator Michael Mitchell. He joins us on Zoom…