Answering the call : a memoir of the modern struggle to end racial discrimination in America

__Answering the Call__ is an extraordinary eyewitness account from an unsung hero of the battle for racial equality in America—a battle that, far from ending with the great victories of the civil rights era, saw some of its signal achievements in the desegregation fights of the 1970s and its most notable setbacks in the affirmative action debates that continue into the present in Ferguson, Baltimore, and beyond. Judge Nathaniel R. Jones's pathbreaking career was forged in the 1960s: as the first African American assistant U.S. attorney in Ohio; as assistant general counsel of the Kerner Commission; and, beginning in 1969, as general counsel of the NAACP. In that latter role, Jones coordinated attacks against Northern school segregation—a vital, divisive, and poorly understood chapter in the movement for equality—twice arguing in the pivotal U.S. Supreme Court case __Bradley v. Milliken__, which addressed school desegregation in Detroit. He also led... “Jones, a trailblazing African American judge, delivers an urgently needed perspective on American history . . . [A] passionate and informative account” ( Booklist , starred review). Answering the Call is an extraordinary eyewitness account from an unsung hero of the battle for racial equality in America—a battle that, far from ending with the great victories of the civil rights era, saw some of its signal achievements in the desegregation fights of the 1970s and its most notable setbacks in the affirmative action debates that continue into the present in Ferguson, Baltimore, and beyond. Judge Nathaniel R. Jones’s groundbreaking career was forged in the 1960s: As the first African American assistant US attorney in Ohio; as assistant general counsel of the Kerner Commission; and, beginning in 1969, as general counsel of the NAACP. In that latter role, Jones coordinated attacks against Northern school segregation—a vital, divisive, and poorly understood chapter in the movement for equality—twice arguing in the pivotal US Supreme Court case Bradley v. Milliken , which addressed school desegregation in Detroit. He also led the national response to the attacks against affirmative action, spearheading and arguing many of the signal legal cases of that effort. Answering the Call is “a stunning, inside story of the contemporary struggle for civil rights . . . Essential reading for understanding where we are today—underscoring just how much work is left to be done” (Vernon E. Jordan Jr., civil rights activist). “A forthright testimony by a witness to history.” — Kirkus Reviews "Answering the Call is an extraordinary eyewitness account from an unsung hero of the battle for racial equality in America-a battle that, far from ending with the great victories of the civil rights era, saw some of its signal achievements in the desegregation fights of the 1970s and its most notable setbacks in the affirmative action debates that continue into the present in Ferguson, Baltimore, and beyond. Judge Nathaniel R. Jones's pathbreaking career was forged in the 1960s: as the first African American assistant U.S. attorney in Ohio; as assistant general counsel of the Kerner Commission; and, beginning in 1969, as general counsel of the NAACP. In that latter role, Jones coordinated attacks against Northern school segregation-a vital, divisive, and poorly understood chapter in the movement for equality-twice arguing in the pivotal U.S. Supreme Court case Bradley v. Milliken, which addressed school desegregation in Detroit. He also led the national response to the attacks against affirmative action, spearheading and arguing many of the signal legal cases of that effort. Judge Jones's story is an essential corrective to the idea of a post-racial America--his voice and his testimony offering enduring evidence of the unfinished work of ending Jim Crow's legacy. "-- Provided by publisher Preface: Why this book? The call My early life Becoming a Civil Rights activist Family, marriages, and faith Political solutions to racial tensions Cutting my teeth as NAACP General Counsel Desegregation and the road to the North : shifting legal strategies, from Plessy to Sweatt to Brown Beyond de facto/de jure : the Northern school desegregation cases The road to the Court Continuing the struggle, on the bench Beyond the United States Beyond the bench Life after the bench Justice Clarence Thomas and the Supreme double cross Obama : election reflections.