Looking Back
From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History
accessible at www.djnfoundation.org
62 | DECEMBER 9 • 2021
O
nce in a while, when researching
a particular topic, I cannot find
anything in the William Davidson
Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History.
This is rare, but one topic often leads to
another interesting subject … or to a per-
son of note.
This year marks the 45th anniversary of
landmark legislation in Michigan. In 1976,
the Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights
Act (ELCRA) was passed. It
is an act with a wide focus,
prohibiting discrimination in
the state based on “religion,
race, color, national origin,
age, sex, height, weight,
familial status or marital
status” in employment,
housing, education and access to public
accommodations.
For Jewish Detroit, the prohibition of
discrimination based on religion is the
key phrase. Indeed, the ELCRA was a
big leap forward for Michigan law in the
1970s. However, the Act is increasingly
relevant in today’s political climate of ris-
ing antisemitism and extreme right-wing
prejudice against others of various types of
“religion, race, color, national origin, etc.”
Despite the path-breaking nature of
the ELCRA, I was surprised to find that
it was only mentioned on two pages of
JN. These were more recent stories about
the efforts of the NJCW to make sure the
Act enforced its sex discrimination pro-
visions regarding pay equity and health
care (JN Dec. 27, 2007, and March 28,
2013). Nevertheless, I did learn a few
things about the Jewish nature of the Act’s
foundation. I also learned that the work
of one Jewish lawyer was instrumental in
laying the foundation of the ELCRA in
the 1960s: Professor Harold Norris (1918-
2013).
The act itself was built upon civil rights
provisions incorporated in the new state
constitution produced by the Michigan
Constitutional Convention, 1961-1962.
Approved by the voters in 1963, it became
the basis for Michigan law in January 1964.
The new constitution featured a national
“first.” It enacted a Michigan Civil Rights
Commission with investigative powers
not found in any other state constitution.
Publisher Emeritus Arthur Horwitz’s essay
“Turning Point for Civil Rights” (Jan.
24, 2013, JN) summarizes this signature
accomplishment, and noted that Professor
Norris played a salient role in crafting its
civil rights provisions, which underlie
1976’s ELRCA.
In the Archive, I found no shortage of
pages citing the work of Norris. A native
of Detroit, as soon as he began practicing
law in Michigan, Norris concentrated on
constitutional, labor and civil liberties
law. He taught more than 6,000 students
about these legal doctrines as a professor
at the Detroit College of Law (DCL), now
a school of Michigan State University, for
37 years.
During his tenure at the DCL, Norris
was elected to Michigan’s Constitutional
Convention in 1961, received two Lifetime
Achievement Awards in 1988 and 2011
from the State Bar of Michigan, a spe-
cial award for “25 Years of Outstanding
Service” from the Detroit Jewish Chronicle,
and was honored by the Michigan
Supreme Court in 1987, to name just a few
accolades.
Norris was also an author of several
books, a celebrated poet and a popular
speaker. His famous poem, The Liberty
Bell, is still on display at the Detroit Public
Library.
The obituary for Professor Norris in
the Oct. 24, 2013, JN was aptly titled
“Champion of Liberty” and it described
him as one of “Michigan’s most celebrated
civil liberties advocates.” Today, we all
benefit from his wisdom.
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
Remembering a Champion of Liberty
the basis for Michigan law in January 1964.
The new constitution featured a national
Publisher Emeritus Arthur Horwitz’s essay
Remembering a Champion of Liberty