walton who is the south first african lawyers. and here he is, a portrait of mr. walden.e was the son of former slaves and sharecroppers. he studied at atlanta university with debbie db2 boys. he went on to graduate from honors -- with honors from michigan. he is little known today, but walden really inspired a generation of african-american lawyers, including vernon jordan, lawyer, counsel to presidents who i'm sure some of you have heard of the. jordan called walden so impressive. he said ago, i want to be a lawyer just like walden. i wanted to walk like him and talk like him and hang out my shingle on auburn street just like walden. above all else, pragmatists like walden and the black college presidents prioritize voting rights as the path to black power. and here we see walden challenging the so-called white primary, applause, the tradition of excluding african-americans from the vote in georgia and elsewhere. and here is the result of his activism. in 1946 after the fall of the white primary, blacks lined up all over the streets in atlanta eager to exercise the fran