Not so very long ago, the people we saw in black robes in a courtroom were exclusively white men. By and large, they were of the Christian faith and came from backgrounds of wealth and privilege. Also, not so long ago, even practicing law as a woman, person of color, or a person with a disability was rare and made one subject to some level of disdain.

Digging back to my own history, when I applied for a scholarship from a private organization prior to attending law school, one of the interviewers actually said to me, “What happens if you meet the man of your dreams?” This person was under the assumption that wanting to marry would derail my ability to enter the legal profession.

Given this history, an upcoming free exhibit focused on the importance of a diverse judiciary and on trailblazers who served in the Missouri courts is welcome news. “The Judicial Legacy Exhibit: Honoring Trailblazers in our Courts” was created and curated by the Law Library Association of St. Louis, a public law library located in downtown St. Louis. The purpose of the exhibit is to shine a light on some of the attorneys who reached the pinnacle of success by ascending to the bench as among the first women, people of color and/or people with disabilities to do so. All are now retired and some are no longer with us. But their service has important lessons to teach.

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One of the judges profiled is the attorney turned judge who was nicknamed “The Mensch on the Bench,” Judge Richard (Rick) Teitelman. Judge Teitelman was not only the first Jewish judge to serve on the Missouri Supreme Court, but he was the first legally blind judge to serve on that court. He overcame much to reach that goal, including efforts in his youth to send him to a special school for the disabled and his inability to find a job right out of law school due to his disability. He ended up having an illustrious career at Legal Services of Eastern Missouri prior to becoming a judge. That required those in a hiring position to recognize his talents rather than discriminate against him for the disability that made it hard for him to see.

Also profiled are trailblazers such as:

–Evelyn Baker: Baker, the first female African American judge to serve the trial courts in St. Louis city, decided to become a judge due to being denied access as a child to a local amusement park because she was Black.

–Clyde Cahill:  Cahill, who served as a trial judge in St. Louis City and then as a federal court judge, was active in the Jefferson Bank protests and efforts to integrate the Fairgrounds Park swimming pool. His early years of activism stayed with him as one of the first African Americans to serve as a judge in our state.

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–Mary Kay Hoff: Hoff, who served in the Missouri trial courts and the Missouri Court of Appeals, made it part of her mission to advocate for the appointment of women judges so that the bench reflected the diversity of the community it served.

As is said in Deuteronomy, “Justice, Justice shalt thou pursue.”   The judges profiled in this exhibit carried this value with them during their time of service, also being mindful that they stood as role models and representatives of people who initially were not welcomed into that profession.

Please come to this important exhibit, opening Sept. 4, and running through March 10. Thanks to National Council of Jewish Women-St. Louis Section, as well as several prominent attorneys in the St. Louis Jewish community, who are among the sponsors of the exhibit.

Find out more about the exhibit, see the full list of sponsors, and plan to visit. Full details are at   https://llastl.org/judicial-legacy-exhibit

Gail Wechsler, a lawyer and law librarian, is the Library Director of the Law Library Association of St. Louis.