Jane Bolin(1908-2007)
Born in 1908, Bolin was a fantastic student, graduated high school in her mid-twenties. Despite all racial barriers, Bolin earned her law degree from Yale Law School in 1931, at just 23. Bolin was the first African American woman to ever graduate from there. She worked at her father's practice for a bit before marrying and moving to New York City in 1933. There, she became the first African American woman to hold the position of assistant corporate counsel of New York. In 1939, at age 39, Bolin was called to appear before Mayor Fiorella La Guardia, who would swear her in as the first African American judge. She would serve for 30 years, actively working to care for and decrease crime in youth and dismantle segregationist policies. Bolin headed boards such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the New York Urban League. In retirement, she volunteered to help out schools and died at the age of 98. In 2011, a biography on Bolin's life came out, Daughter of the Empire State: The Life of Judge Jane Boline, written by Jacqueline A. Mcleod.
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