Former federal law clerk: Jackson loses three titans who had national influence

By Stephen Tagert | Originally published by Mississippi Today

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Jackson lost three titans in March. The Rev. Dr. Thomas Wiley “T.W.” Lewis, age 94, the Rev. Dr. John M. Perkins, 95, and the Honorable E. Grady Jolly, 88, died within a week, from March 10 to March 15. They were not close friends with each other, but all three impacted me.

By way of background, I lived in Jackson for only a year to serve as a law clerk to Judge Jolly. But my Jackson story goes back further. In fact, Dr. Lewis is one of the reasons in God’s providence that I exist. My parents met in Jackson while attending Millsaps, and the only reason my mom was able to attend there is because my grandfather’s first cousin – Dr. Lewis – was a long-time professor at the college. My grandparents trusted that “T.W.” would check in on her and make sure she was Ok.

But that’s not all T.W. did. Stories of his kindness and courage are well-known by many Mississippians. He was among the many who worked to desegregate Mississippi during the Civil Rights movement. He faced threats to he and his family for his work, but he persisted and pushed Millsaps College to be the first primarily white college in Mississippi to accept Black students. He taught generations of students about how true faith should make the mind curious and lead to action to make the world more just.

Now to Judge Jolly. He served as a U.S. Court of Appeals judge – among the highest honors in the legal profession – for more than 43 years. Judge Jolly was a man of great character and candor, a straight shooter who focused on the job of “getting the law right” based on what it said, not his personal preference. He was known for his humor and wit, but he was also a man of great depth who molded generations of lawyers and taught them how to discern what was right and true and what was mere “purple prose.” 

Finally, Dr. Perkins. He was an African American born in segregated Mississippi and turned his oppression into an abundant ministry. His brother served our country in World War II, and when he came home, that brother was killed by a white police officer.

Soon after, he left Mississippi for California, planning to never return, until he was converted to Christianity and knew Jesus as his savior. Dr. Perkins then returned to Mississippi to both help his community and spend the next 60 years pursuing a ministry of racial reconciliation so that 11 a.m. on Sunday morning was no longer “the most segregated hour of the week” – a ministry that impacted hundreds of churches. 

All three men shared a deep love for Mississippi despite leaving or contemplating leaving at various points.

Judge Jolly worked in North Carolina and the District of Columbia because of, in his words, his “liberal proclivities.” But he came back because he and his beloved wife, Bettye, were committed to serving the state of Mississippi.

Dr. Lewis received his education in the Northeast and was months away from leaving Millsaps before it ultimately decided to accept Black students.

As stated above, Dr. Perkins left before deciding that the Lord was calling him back.

But all three men had a large impact on the world while residing in the Magnolia State.

Judge Jolly’s more than 130 clerks live in all corners of the United States, and they are public servants in the federal government, leaders in private companies and practicing lawyers who have worked on thousands of cases. His decisions impacted thousands more.

Dr. Lewis’s students included pastors and lawyers (including at least one federal judge), who served others throughout Mississippi and the Southeast.

And Dr. Perkins regularly preached throughout the country and rose up the next generation of pastors and civil rights leaders to recognize the simple truths that God loves each one of us and only He can fulfill our deepest needs. Only through Him can we truly love each other.

These three titans are no longer with us. I will not forget them, but I will miss them. I am thankful for the lives they lived.

Stephen Tagert is a lawyer from a small town in Appalachia who currently lives in Washington, D.C. and works in the federal government. He previously lived in Mississippi, where much of his mother’s family still resides. All views are his own and do not represent that of any organization for which he has worked.

This article was originally published by Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Source: Original Article