Charles Ogletree has enjoyed an incredible career as an attorney, professor, media personality and champion of civil rights. Along with his several accomplishments on the academic and legal front, Ogletree was instrumental in providing an educational foundation for President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.
Charles James Ogletree Jr. was born December 31, 1952 in Merced, Calif. After earning both his undergraduate and graduate degrees from Stanford University, he obtained his J.D. From Harvard Law School in 1978. In the earlier part of his career, Ogletree worked for Washington, D.C.’s Public Defender Service and swiftly rose in the ranks.
As an attorney, Ogletree represented clients such as the late Tupac Shakur, and worked on the legal team that represented Anita Hill during the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice, Clarence Thomas. This month, HBO released a film, Confirmation, depicting the hearings with Jeffrey Wright starring as Ogletree and Scandal’s Kerry Washington in the role of Hill.
Little Known Black History Fact: Charles Ogletree was originally published on blackamericaweb.com
