Warriors Don’t Cry

by

Melba Beals

Thurgood Marshall Character Analysis

An attorney for the NAACP and the chief attorney in the Brown v. Board of Education case. Marshall also served as the head of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund. Shortly before Melba attends Central High School, she and her family watch an announcer talk about Marshall on television. Marshall, in concert with the NAACP, ordered the Federal District Court to start integrating schools immediately. In 1967, President Lyndon Johnson appointed Marshall to the Supreme Court, where he served as the first black justice until 1991.
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Thurgood Marshall Character Timeline in Warriors Don’t Cry

The timeline below shows where the character Thurgood Marshall appears in Warriors Don’t Cry. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 5
Racism and Living Under Jim Crow Theme Icon
The Cost of Non-Conformity Theme Icon
...Numerous “very dignified and important-looking men” from the NAACP sit in her living room, including Thurgood Marshall whom Melba recognizes from the newspaper reports of the Brown v. Board of Education decision... (full context)
Chapter 6
Racism and Living Under Jim Crow Theme Icon
The Cost of Non-Conformity Theme Icon
...be in the courtroom. The Little Rock Nine enter the Federal Building with Daisy Bates, Thurgood Marshall , and several other people. Melba wears dark glasses so that no one can see... (full context)
Racism and Living Under Jim Crow Theme Icon
...members of the NAACP is “a greasy joint” in a “shabby section” of Little Rock. Thurgood Marshall sits with the Little Rock Nine, eating overcooked hamburgers topped with wilted lettuce. He expresses... (full context)
Chapter 14
Racism and Living Under Jim Crow Theme Icon
Passive vs. Violent Resistance Theme Icon
The Cost of Non-Conformity Theme Icon
Relationships, Romance, and Empathy  Theme Icon
...with the Arkansas Democrat explaining the pressure she was under at Central and her isolation. Thurgood Marshall says in the article that he does not know how much more mistreatment the students... (full context)