CLEVELAND — In a school where some of Northeast Ohio’s brightest minds learn how to argue their case, Cleveland city councilman Kevin Conwell is making his own case about who Cleveland State’s College of Law should be named after.
Back in November, CSU voted unanimously to remove former Chief Justice John Marshall’s name from the College of Law after learning he was a slave owner.
Councilman Conwell is working on a resolution to suggest Charles Hamilton Houston’s name as a replacement.
Houston is the first general counsel of the NAACP and a documented mentor to many in the legal field, including Thurgood Marshall.
“It would be a complete turnaround, John Marshall was a slaveholder, but the man that fought against Jim Crow and he fought for better life for Americans was Charles Houston," said Conwell. “Houston is pushing the principles of what Cleveland State should be about, helping and changing lives and making lives better for people. Houston argued in front of the Supreme Court; Houston also cultivated young African Americans to go down south and fight for rights for people."
Delante Thomas is a College of Law alum and sits on the Board of Directors for the school’s Law Alumni Association.
“We just have to be careful because things will change, and how we idolize imperfect humans will continue to manifest and show itself, and that’s exactly what we are seeing with Chief Justice John Marshall," said Thomas.
Thomas added that CSU shouldn’t add a name and instead should focus on access.
“How we invest in black and brown students to make sure those students have access to equitable education and resources, rather than the name," said Thomas.
A current CSU law student has a different suggestion.
“Honoring a black attorney from Cleveland would be excellent,” said Meagan Holloway-Ragland. “Honoring any kind of black attorney or black people who have contributed to the legal field would be great."
Meantime, Conwell said he plans to speak with CSU’s president about this suggestion and said he believes he will get enough support to pass a resolution.
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