Matthew Perry was born in Columbia, South Carolina, on August 3, 1921. Perry grew up in Columbia, and attended South Carolina State University, where he studied business administration. His education at S.C.S.U. was cut short, due to being called into the U.S. Army to fight World War II. It was during his time in the Army when Perry realized that African Americans were being denied their full rights as American citizens. After the war, he resumed his education at S.C.S.U., and decided to pursue a career in law. Perry felt that he could serve as a force for good with a law career, and discusses how he was inspired by Thurgood Marshall.
Upon graduating, Perry moved to Spartanburg to establish his law firm, and to begin the arduous process of achieving equal rights in S.C. Perry became actively involved with the S.C. NAACP.
Matthew Perry was born in Columbia, South Carolina, on August 3, 1921. Perry grew up in Columbia, and attended South Carolina State University, where he studied business administration. His education at S.C.S.U. was cut short, due to being called into the U.S. Army to fight World War II. It was during his time in the Army when Perry realized that African Americans were being denied their full rights as American citizens. After the war, he resumed his education at S.C.S.U., and decided to pursue a career in law. Perry felt that he could serve as a force for good with a law career, and discusses how he was inspired by Thurgood Marshall.
Upon graduating, Perry moved to Spartanburg to establish his law firm, and to begin the arduous process of achieving equal rights in S.C. Perry became actively involved with the S.C. NAACP.
Standards
- 5.4.CC Analyze the continuities and changes of race relations in the United States and South Carolina following the Supreme Court decisions of Briggs v. Elliott and Brown v. Board of Education.
- 8.5.CX Analyze the correlation between the Modern Civil Rights Movement in South Carolina and the U.S.
- This indicator was designed to foster inquiry into the role of South Carolina in the Modern Civil Rights Movement, to include the influence of court cases such as Briggs v. Elliot and Flemming v. South Carolina Electric and Gas. This indicator was also developed to promote inquiry into the relationship between national leadership, protests, and events and South Carolina leadership, protests and events, such as the Friendship Nine and the Orangeburg Massacre.
- USHC.5.CC Evaluate continuities and changes during the Civil Rights Movement and other subsequent movements for equal rights.
- This indicator was developed to promote inquiry into thematic continuities and changes into how marginalized groups sought and won legal rights. Inquiry into the leadership, methods, and outcomes of modern equal rights movements are supported by this indicator.
Resources
Matthew Perry
Upon returning home to Columbia, Matthew Perry established the Jenkins and Perry Law Firm, and became the chief legal counsel for the S.C. NAACP, where he began the battle toward the desegregation of...
View AssetMatthew Perry
In 1975, after a nomination from Senator Strom Thurmond, then President Gerald Ford nominated Matthew Perry to a position on the U.S. Court of Military Appeals. Perry discusses what the Court of...
View AssetMatthew J. Perry, Jr. (1921-2011) | Road Trip
The Honorable Matthew J. Perry, Jr. helped win a number of monumental cases in the U.S. Supreme Court, and he secured the release of over 7,000 persons who were arrested for participating in civil...
View AssetMatthew J. Perry, Jr. | History of SC Slide Collection
Matthew J. Perry (1924-2011 ), Jr., a native South Carolinian, became a noted civil rights attorney for the NAACP; his legal victory on behalf of Harvey Gantt's suit to be admitted to Clemson...
View AssetWaverly Tour with Judge Matthew J. Perry | Road Trip
University of South Carolina student Haden Choiniere and Judge Matthew J. Perry, give a brief history of the contributions of Judge Perry to the Civil Rights Movement in South Carolina.
View AssetMatthew Perry | S.C. Hall of Fame
Matthew James Perry, Jr. was born in Columbia, South Carolina, August 3, 1921. He attended law school at South Carolina State College and would play a central role in nearly every noteworthy civil...
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