Looking Back

From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History

accessible at www.djnfoundation.org

62 | JUNE 17 • 2021 

The People’s Lawyer
O

ne hundred and five years 
ago, on June 1, 1916, Louis 
Dembitz Brandeis took his 
seat on the Supreme Court of the United 
States. This was a monumental moment, 
and its anniversary should be celebrated. 
Brandeis had a deep, significant impact 
upon the nature of American law. He 
also made history as the first Jewish 
member of the Supreme 
Court.
Brandeis was born 
on Nov. 13, 1856, in 
Louisville, Ky., and was 
raised by Jewish immi-
grants from Bohemia 
(now part of the Czech 
Republic). Brandeis was a 
brilliant student, who enrolled in the law 
school at Harvard University and gradu-
ated at the age of 20.
Upon graduation, Brandeis moved to 
Boston and opened a law firm that still 
exists today. As he pursued progressive 
causes such as fair labor laws and the 
anti-monopoly movement, Brandeis 
soon gained a reputation as a progressive 
thinker, dubbed the “People’s Lawyer.
” 
He believed that “If we desire respect 
for the law, we must first make the law 
respectable.
” In this regard, Brandeis 
co-authored a pathbreaking article, “The 
Right to Privacy,
” in the Harvard Law 
Review in 1890 that altered American 
jurisprudence. 
President Woodrow Wilson’s nomina-
tion of Brandeis to the Supreme Court 
in 1916 caused a tremendous battle in 
the U.S. Senate. He was bitterly opposed 
by many senators who labeled Brandeis 
a “militant crusader for social justice.
” In 
that era, the fact that he was Jewish was 
certainly a factor as well. 
Brandeis was eventually appointed 
to the Court in 1916 and served there 
until 1939. He died on Oct. 5, 1941. His 
legacy continues to this day, especially, 
in legal interpretations of freedom of 

speech and the right to privacy.
References to and stories about 
Brandeis can be found in every decade 
in the pages of the Detroit Jewish 
Chronicle and the JN in the William 
Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish 
Detroit History. There are announce-
ments for the activities of the Louis 
Brandeis Lodge of B’nai B’rith in Detroit 
or the Louis Brandeis awards from the 
local chapter of the Zionist Organization 
of America. There are many serious 
discussions of Brandeis and his ideas. 
Indeed, the first mention of Brandeis 
in the March 24, 1916, issue of the 
Chronicle is about his Supreme 
Court nomination battle. 
Brandeis was also a dedicated 
Zionist. The editorial in the Nov. 
13, 1931, Chronicle is about his 
particular approach to Zionism: 
“My approach to Zionism 
was through Americanism.
” 
Furthermore, Brandeis declared: 
“To be a good American one must 
also be a good Jew.
”
As proof, perhaps, of the con-
tinuing relevance of Brandeis, see 
the article by Harold Gurewitz 
in the Sept. 27, 2018, issue of the 
JN: “Justice Brandeis and a Right 
to Privacy in the Digital Age.
” The 
point is that Brandeis is still the primary 
benchmark for privacy rights.
Brandeis is universally considered to 
be one of the giants of American jurists. 
He was a guardian of our nation and the 
rights of its citizens. After the attack on 
the capital on Jan. 6, 2021, I also think of 
his wise warning: “The greatest dangers 
to liberty lurk in the insidious encroach-
ment by men of zeal, well meaning, but 
without understanding.
” Yes, Brandeis 
understood the rule of law. 

Want to learn more? Go to the DJN Foundation 
archives, available for free at
www.djnfoundation.org.

Mike Smith
Alene and 
Graham Landau 
Archivist Chair

in the March 24, 1916, issue of the 

“To be a good American one must 

to Privacy in the Digital Age.
” The 

point is that Brandeis is still the primary 

be one of the giants of American jurists. 
He was a guardian of our nation and the 

the capital on Jan. 6, 2021, I also think of 

to liberty lurk in the insidious encroach-

Go to the DJN Foundation 

