Students Honor Oliver Hill’s Legacy

Students in the Richmond Public Schools were given the opportunity recently to participate in the Oliver Hill Essay Contest. The essays were judged by Shameka Hall of the Office of the Public Defender and Jennie Sublett of the Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney's Office.

"We were looking for people who went beyond providing a history lesson to really analyzing the ways in which Oliver Hill and other leaders of the Civil Rights Movement contributed to the election of Barack Obama, which signified the fruition of the dreams of millions of American citizens," Sublett said. "We were particularly impressed by those essays that recognized the incredible opportunities that are open to the youth of today that were only made available through the efforts of leaders like Oliver Hill."

The winning entry was written by Promise Wheeler, a sophomore at Franklin Military Academy. We are pleased to print her entire essay below. We are also publishing excerpts from the secondand third-place winners, who also are students at Franklin Military Academy. The contest was sponsored by the Ricks Foundation. The students were honored at a ceremony on May 1 and received award certificates and gift cards. FIRST PLACE: BY PROMISE J. WHEELER

Change is a big word nowadays. Everyone's talking about change; change we can believe in. People always say that time changes things, but sometimes you have to change things for yourself. At least that is what my great-grandfather used to say: "Time waits for no one, no matter who you are. If you want something you have to go and do something to get it. You can't be lazy, P.J., ever."

I think that is how Oliver Hill must have felt when he started his career as a lawyer. I guess he was sick and tired of being sick and tired when he and the other NAACP lawyers came before the United States Supreme Court in the famous case, Brown v. Board of Education. The case was a combination of five cases, one of which was Oliver Hill's case, Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County, Virginia. Oliver Hill, a native of Virginia, was born May 1, 1907, and he died on August 5, 2007. Hill was a civil rights attorney who fought against such topics as racial discrimination involving salaries for African-American teachers and desegregation of public schools in Virginia.

After graduating from Howard University's Law School, Oliver Hill started practicing law in Richmond, Virginia in 1939. One of Hill's first cases was against the School Board of Norfolk. Due to his success in that case, black teachers began earning the same pay as the white teachers. After about four years of practicing law, Hill joined the United States Army in 1943 and served in World War II. After serving, he returned to practicing law in Virginia. Soon after returning home, he won the rights for equal bus transportation for African-American children in the Virginia Supreme Court.

In the early 1950s, Oliver Hill was the co-counsel with his law partner, Spottswood W. Robinson III, and together they fought many civil rights cases all across the state of Virginia. From 1951 to 1954, both Oliver Hill and Spottswood Robinson worked on their most famous case, Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County, Virginia. The case was lost and the court upheld segregation in Prince Edward County, but the NAACP appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Because of Oliver Hill's achievements and the achievements of many others, all public schools and even some colleges were desegregated and made equal. Even though this problem was mainly in southern America, it changed the outlook all across America. Oliver Hill's work and contributions to his community, state, and country paved the road for change in America. He paved the way for such people as President Barack Obama and Dr. Benjamin Carson, one of the world's greatest neurologists, to get through school and become somebody. Oliver Hill's dedication to his work should be an example to everyone.

Hill could have given up, but he decided to do something. I do not think President Barack Obama would be the man he is today if it had not been for Oliver Hill and other civil rights leaders. Because of Oliver Hill's monumental work with Brown v. Board of Education, President Obama received a proper and even top-notch education that enabled him to become our first African-American president. The Civil Rights Movement has made it so easy for young people to get an education in America, and all we have to do is refuse to follow the crowd and stop being lazy. Even though Oliver Hill and so many others have paved the way for us as young people, our future is strictly dependent upon us and whether or not we are willing to take advantage of every opportunity we have.

We can choose to let the works of Thurgood Marshall, Oliver Hill, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott King, Ruby Bridges, Fredrick Douglas, Harriet Tubman, Dred Scott, Malcolm X, and countless, countless others go to waste, or we can come out strong and prove all the statistics wrong. The opportunities available to young people today are countless. I think it is very important for young people to know and remember that many people have lost their lives for change, and I refuse to let their dream or my dream die. SECOND PLACE: BY SHELTIA STRICKLAND

The actions of Oliver Hill are one reason why President Obama is a successful African-American . . . .Mr. Hill has made many contributions to the well-being of African-Americans today. Without his courage in working to have everything equal, our president, Barack Obama, would not be as successful as he is today . . . .

The actions of those from the past help us have a better future. We need to be thankful for all of those who died for us to have a better life. Nothing is impossible. With inspiration and belief in yourself, you can do anything: maybe become another African-American president, male or female. President Obama is a prime example to show youth that no matter how your life was when you were younger, it does not have to define who you become when you're older and grown. THIRD PLACE: BY DIAMOND BLATHERS

I believe a lot of President Obama's successes would not have been possible without Oliver Hill and other leaders that came before him. Barack Obama was born less than 10 years after the Brown v. Board of Education case, and without that case, Barack Obama, as well as many other people, wouldn't have been able to attend integrated schools. I believe the past helps to shape the future. You can't go forward without knowing what happened in the past. Our ancestors went through a lot so that we would not have to endure the hardships and struggles they endured.

Therefore, I think it is important for young people to take advantage of every opportunity available today. As a student, I can go to any school I want to. If I am unhappy at my zone school, I have the option to transfer to another school that may better fit my interests or goals. Another opportunity available to young people today is technology, and with technology such as computers and the Internet, people have access to more information than what was available 10-20 years ago. Young people have every advantage and opportunity available to them today, and therefore, we have no excuse not to be successful. With hard work and persistence, we can do and become anything we want, and President Barack Obama has proven it.