Benjamin Crump, renowned attorney, civil rights leader and author, presented Texas Southern University with a $20,000 check after serving as commencement speaker at the university’s Spring 2021 graduation.
The ceremony was held Saturday, May 8th, at the Alexander Durley Stadium, where Crump addressed the 1,073 students who participated both in-person and virtually. During the event, he announced the Benjamin Crump Social Justice Endowed Scholarship at Texas Southern University and presented them with the funds.
Crump is the founder and principal owner of Ben Crump Law and has established himself as one of the nation’s foremost lawyers and advocates for social justice. His tireless advocacy has led to legislation preventing excessive force and developing implicit bias training and policies. He has represented families in several high-profile civil rights cases including, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown as well as the residents of Flint, Michigan, who were affected by the Flint River’s poisonous water. Crump also represented nine of the 13 black women who were victims in the Holtzclaw Oklahoma City Police rape case in 2015 and worked on the precedent-setting U.S. Supreme Court case involving excessive police force against Houstonian Robbie Tolan in 2008.
“Ben Crump exemplifies moral courage. Throughout his career, he has spoken truth to power, reminding us of the impact that a single voice can have,” said TSU Interim President Ken Huewitt. “As our graduates prepare to make their difference in the world, I have no doubt they will find both strength and inspiration in his words.”
Crump is the President of the National Civil Rights Trial Lawyers Association and previously served as President of the National Bar Association. He was the first African-American to chair the Florida State University College of Law Board of Directors and currently serves on the Innocence Project Board of Directors. Crump is the founder and director of the Benjamin Crump Social Justice Institute.
Among dozens of accomplishments, Crump has been recognized with the NAACP Thurgood Marshall Award, the SCLC Martin Luther King Servant Leader Award, the American Association for Justice Johnnie Cochran Award, and the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated Eleanor Roosevelt Medallion for Service.
Crump graduated from Florida State University and received his law degree from FSU College of Law.
