H. Con. Res. 381 
Agreed to July 16, 2008 
One Hundred Tenth Congress 
of the 
United States of America 
AT THE SECOND SESSION 
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Thursday, 
the third day of January, two thousand and eight 
Concurrent Resolution 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall was born in Baltimore, Maryland, 
on July 2, 1908, the grandson of a slave; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall developed an interest in the Constitu-
tion and the rule of law in his youth; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall graduated from Lincoln University 
in Pennsylvania with honors in 1930, but was denied acceptance 
at the all-white University of Maryland Law School because he 
was African-American; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall attended law school at Howard Univer-
sity, the country’s most prominent black university, and grad-
uated first in his class in 1933; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall served as the legal director of the 
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 
(NAACP) from 1940 to 1961; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall argued 32 cases before the Supreme 
Court of the United States, beginning with the case of Chambers 
v. Florida in 1940, and won 29 of them, earning more victories 
in the Supreme Court than any other individual; 
Whereas, as Chief Counsel of the NAACP, Thurgood Marshall 
fought to abolish segregation in schools and challenged laws 
that discriminated against African-Americans; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall argued Brown v. Board of Education 
before the Supreme Court in 1954, which resulted in the famous 
decision declaring racial segregation in public schools unconstitu-
tional, overturning the 1896 decision in Plessy v. Ferguson; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall was nominated to the United States 
Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit by President John F. 
Kennedy in 1961, and was confirmed by the United States Senate 
in spite of heavy opposition from many Southern Senators; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall served on the United States Court 
of Appeals for the Second Circuit from 1961 to 1965, during 
which time he wrote 112 opinions, none of which were overturned 
on appeal; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall was nominated as Solicitor General 
of the United States by President Lyndon Johnson, and served 
as the first African-American Solicitor General from 1965 to 
1967; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall was nominated as an Associate Justice 
of the Supreme Court by President Johnson in 1967, and served 
as the first African-American member of the Supreme Court;
H. Con. Res. 381—2 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall sought to protect the rights of all 
Americans during his 24 years as a justice on the Supreme 
Court; 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall was honored with the Liberty Medal 
in 1992, in recognition of his long history of protecting the rights 
of women, children, prisoners, and the homeless; and 
Whereas Thurgood Marshall died on January 24, 1993, at the 
age of 84: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concur-
ring), That Congress— 
(1) honors the dedication and achievements of Thurgood 
Marshall; 
(2) recognizes the contributions of Thurgood Marshall to 
the struggle for equal rights and justice in the United States; 
and 
(3) celebrates the lifetime achievements of Thurgood Mar-
shall on the 100th anniversary of his birth. 
Attest: 
Clerk of the House of Representatives. 
Attest: 
Secretary of the Senate.