Compston Biography of Earl Warren, “Justice for All”
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Compston Biography of Earl Warren, “Justice for All”
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By Josh Brown
Chief
Justice Earl Warren led the Supreme Court in making some of the toughest
decisions of the 20th century, including championing school desegregation
in the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education. In Earl Warren: Justice
for All, published by Oxford University Press, Christine L. Compston
traces the ascent of Warren from working-class childhood to the bench
of the highest court in the nation.
With black and white photographs and illustrations throughout, the book follows the struggles behind some of the most pivotal events of the century, including World War II, the civil rights movement, and the investigation of President Kennedy’s assassination.
“I really wrote it for an audience that is interested in learning more about Warren, the Supreme Court, and the judicial process, but does not want to wade through a long, scholarly tome,” says Compston, who teaches American history at UMass Boston.
“One of the things I admire about Warren was his ability to learn from his mistakes,” Compston says. As attorney general of California, Warren supported the internment of Japanese Americans and Japanese immigrants during World War II. “As soon as he saw innocent children being sent off to these camps,” she says, “he realized that he had been wrong in judging a whole people to be a threat to national security. As chief justice of the United States, he applied the lesson to the many cases involving civil rights that came before his court.”
Compston draws upon memos sent between the justices and Warren’s notes as primary sources, showing readers the inner workings of the nation’s highest court. “One of my goals was to provide readers with a sense of how the Supreme Court operates — how cases are actually decided,” she says.