Arthur Shores

Arthur Shores

Quick Facts

Significance:

Civil Rights Attorney for NAACP

Place of Birth:

Birmingham, Alabama

Date of Birth:

September 25, 1904

Place of Death:

Birmingham, Alabama

Date of Death:

December 16, 2996

Place of Burial:

Birmingham, Alabama

Cemetery Name:

Elmwood Cemetery

Arthur D. Shores grew up in the mining town of Wenonah, Alabama. After graduating high school, he attended Talladega College where he earned a teaching degree. From there, he was admitted to University of Kansas’ law program, but decided to get his law degree more quickly at LaSalle Extension University. Upon earning his law degree, he passed the Alabama Bar which, at the time, was one of the most difficult in the country. From there he started practicing law in Alabama where few black attorneys worked; instead, they commonly performed the “leg work” for white attorneys who would try the cases in court. Soon thereafter, Shores became the first black attorney in Alabama to represent his own clients in court.  One of his early cases that earned him notoriety was one in which a white Birmingham officer was convicted of assaulting black labor leader Will Hall. He went on to successfully handle several cases in which his role as attorney was controversial; this earned him the reputation as one of the nation’s top civil rights attorneys.

Shores acquaintance with fellow civil rights attorney Thurgood Marshall eventually got him involved with the Brown v Board of Education of Topeka lawsuit. Shores joined Marshall as an attorney with NAACP which was challenging segregation in the nation’s public schools. Earlier in 1953, Shores represented black students Autherine Lucy and Polly Myers in the case Lucy v Adams. Lucy and Myers had been accepted to the University of Alabama, but when their identities as black women were revealed, they were thrown out. After the 1954 Brown v Board ruling ended segregation, Shores and Marshall used Lucy v Adams case as a test of the ruling. The Brown v Board and Lucy v Adams rulings lead to both integration in public schools and admittance of two black women to a university.  

Shores was also known for his role in bridging the gap between two races. After segregation was outlawed nationwide under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Shores continued to fight for racial equality and, in 1968, became the first African American member of the Birmingham City Council.  The NAACP honored him with the William Robert Ming award for his role as lawyer and advocate for civil rights. Shores passed away in 1996.