Edward Richard Dudley

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other people named Edward Dudley, see Edward Dudley (disambiguation).
Edward R. Dudley
Raphael O'Hara Lanier
Succeeded byHimself (as Ambassador)
Personal details
Born
Edward Richard Dudley

(1911-03-11)March 11, 1911
LL.B.
)

Edward Richard Dudley (March 11, 1911 – February 8, 2005) was an American lawyer, judge, civil rights activist and the first

Ambassador of the United States, as ambassador to Liberia from 1949 to 1953.[1]

Life

Dudley was born on March 11, 1911, in South Boston, Virginia, to Edward Richard and Nellie (nee Johnson) Dudley. He graduated with a bachelor of science degree from Johnson C. Smith College in 1932 where he became a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, and then taught school in Gainsboro, Virginia. He studied dentistry for a year on a scholarship at Howard University, and then moved to New York City.[citation needed]

In New York, Dudley worked in odd jobs including stage manager for

New York State attorney general in 1942. In 1942, he married Rae Oley. They had a son, Edward R. Dudley III.[citation needed
]

In 1943, he joined the

N.A.A.C.P. legal team. As an assistant special counsel, he wrote briefs and prepared cases seeking the admission of black students to Southern colleges, equal pay for black teachers and an end to discrimination in public transportation.[citation needed
]

He was executive assistant to the

Robert F. Wagner, Jr., appointed him as justice of the Domestic Relations Court.[citation needed
]

Dudley was the

Louis Lefkowitz. He was a delegate to the 1964 Democratic National Convention. J. Raymond Jones was influential in helping Dudley in New York politics.[citation needed
]

In November 1964, Dudley was elected as a justice of the

New York State Supreme Court for the First Judicial District (Manhattan and the Bronx), a post he held from 1965 until his retirement in 1985.[citation needed
]

Death

Dudley died of prostate cancer in St. Luke's Hospital in Manhattan on February 8, 2005, aged 93. He was survived by his widow, their son, two brothers (Dr. Calmeze Dudley and Dr. Hubert Dudley) and three grandchildren (Kevin, Kyle and Alexandra Dudley).[citation needed]

The Dudley family summered in the SANS community,[2] buying their lot during the 1950s expansion into Sag Harbor Hills. The cottage is presently[when?] occupied by the Dudley family.

In 2022, Dudley was featured in The American Diplomat, a PBS documentary that explores the lives and legacies of three African-American ambassadors.

See also

  • Harlem Clubhouse

Further reading

  • John C. Walker,The Harlem Fox: J. Raymond Jones at Tammany 1920:1970, New York: State University New York Press, 1989.
  • Paterson, David "Black, Blind, & In Charge: A Story of Visionary Leadership and Overcoming Adversity." New York, New York, 2020
  • David N. Dinkins, A Mayor's Life: Governing New York's Gorgeous Mosaic, PublicAffairs Books, 2013
  • Rangel, Charles B.; Wynter, Leon. And I Haven't Had a Bad Day Since: From the Streets of Harlem to the Halls of Congress. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2007.
  • Baker Motley, Constance Equal Justice Under The Law: An Autobiography, New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1998.
  • Howell, Ron Boss of Black Brooklyn: The Life and Times of Bertram L. Baker Fordham University Press Bronx, New York, 2018
  • Jack, Hulan Fifty Years a Democrat:The Autobiography of Hulan Jack New Benjamin Franklin House New York, NY, 1983
  • Clayton-Powell, Adam Adam by Adam:The Autobiography of Adam Clayton Powell Jr. New York, New York, 1972
  • Pritchett, Wendell E.
    Robert Clifton Weaver
    and the American City: The Life and Times of an Urban Reformer     Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2008
  • Davis, Benjamin
    Communist Councilman from Harlem:Autobiographical Notes Written in a Federal Penitentiary New York, New York, 1969

References

  1. ^ Wolfgang Saxon (February 11, 2005). "Edward R. Dudley, 93, Civil Rights Advocate and Judge, Dies". The New York Times. p. C 14. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  2. ^ McFadden, Robert D. (12 May 1970). "Impatient City Judge". The New York Times.

External links

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Diplomatic posts
Preceded by United States Minister to Liberia
1948–1949 		Succeeded by
Himself
as Ambassador to Liberia
Preceded by
Himself
as Minister to Liberia
United States Ambassador to Liberia

1949–1953 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by
Hulan E. Jack
Borough President of Manhattan

1961–1964 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Peter J. Crotty
Democratic Nominee for New York State Attorney General

1962 		Succeeded by
Frank Sedita
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