Charlotte Ray was born in New York City in 1850, the daughter of an abolitionist minister and editor of a newspaper called “The Colored American.” Ray was sent to Washington, DC to the Institution for the Education of Colored Youth, where she graduated in 1869. It was one of the few places that a female African-American could get a quality education.

After school, she began teaching at the preparatory school of Howard University. She applied for and was admitted into the Howard University School of Law under the initials “C.E. Ray.” It is believed that she did this to disguise her gender because the law school did not accept females. While in law school, she specialized in corporate law.

Ray earned her law degree in 1872, with honors and was admitted to the District of Columbia Bar that same year. With this, Ray became the first African-American female attorney in the United States as well as one of the first women admitted to the D.C. Bar. In addition, she became the first woman granted permission to argue cases in from of the United States Supreme Court at the capitol. She opened her own law practice and advertised in newspapers owned by Frederick Douglass. She was said to have been one of the best corporate lawyers in America, but she was unable to maintain a steady clientele because of the color of her skin. After several years of practice, she was forced to leave law and go back into teaching in the Brooklyn School System.

After moving to New York, she married. Ray took up various cause, including women’s suffrage and the National Association of Colored Women. She was a pioneer both for women and African-Americans in the legal world. Her contributions to education and jurisprudence made Charlotte Ray a great American.

He was born James William Johnson in Jacksonville, Florida in 1871. He changed his middle name to Weldon later in life. His mother was the first black public school teacher in Florida. He went to high school where his mother taught and he fell in love with English literature and music. After graduating high school at the age of 16, he attended Clark Atlanta University and received his bachelor’s degree in 1894.

After college, Johnson became a principal at a grammar school in Jacksonville. While serving as principal, he founded “The Daily American” newspaper in 1895. He also studied law and in 1897, became the first African-American to pass the bar exam in Florida.

Soon after passing the bar, Johnson and his brother John, a composer, wrote the song “Lift Every Voice and Sing” in honor of President Abraham Lincoln. The song would later become the official anthem of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). After composing the song, the Johnson brothers moved to New York City and would go on to write over 200 songs for Broadway musicals. James Johnson began studying literature at Columbia University. He also married Grace Nail, a prominent civil rights activist.

In 1904, he became involved in the Republican Party as a means to promote racial equality at a national level. In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt appointed James Johnson to diplomatic positions in Venezuela and Nicaragua. When he returned to the United States in 1914, he became involved with the NAACP. By 1920, he became chief executive of the organization. Using his status in the organization, he promoted development in the artistic community of New York City which would later be known as the Harlem Renaissance.

Johnson was also involved in writing during this time. He published several poems and books throughout the 1920s. By 1930, Johnson left the NAACP and returned to teaching. First, he accepted a position as chair of creative literature at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. Four years later, he became the first African-American professor at New York University. He taught classes in both literature and culture.

Johnson taught up until his death in a car accident in 1938. He was a supporter of civil rights in America and expressed it in his music, poetry, stories and leadership in the NAACP. He served his country as a diplomat and served his community as a teacher. Johnson’s legacy to the Harlem Renaissance and the civil rights movement made him a great American.