Sigma Gamma Rho’s Ruth Whitehead Whaley Was the First Black Woman Admitted to the North Carolina Bar

Did you know that one of the first Black women to practice law in the United States was a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.? Her name was Ruth Whitehead Whaley, and she broke barriers in the legal profession at a time when few Black women were allowed anywhere near a courtroom.

Ruth Whitehead Whaley was born in 1901 in Goldsboro, North Carolina. She graduated from Livingstone College, the historically Black institution in Salisbury, North Carolina, in 1919, and went on to attend Fordham University School of Law, where she graduated at the top of her class in 1924. She was a soror of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., which holds the distinction of being the only Divine Nine sorority founded at a predominantly white institution.

Whaley made history almost immediately. She was admitted to the New York bar in 1925, becoming one of the first Black women to practice law in the state, and in 1933 she became the first Black woman admitted to the North Carolina bar. As Fraternity History and More documents, she practiced law in New York for roughly fifteen years, appearing in every level of the state’s courts.

Her talent carried her into the halls of government. From 1951 to 1973, Whaley served as secretary to the New York City Board of Estimate, then one of the most powerful bodies in city government, making her one of the highest-ranking Black women in municipal government anywhere in the country.

Whaley was also a devoted leader within Sigma Gamma Rho. According to Fraternity History and More, she was an active member of the sorority’s Kappa Sigma Chapter in New York City, where she served as basileus, and she was a familiar presence at regional meetings and national conventions, even serving as parliamentarian at one of the sorority’s Boules.

Ruth Whitehead Whaley died on December 23, 1977. Her legacy endures at Fordham Law School, which elected her to its Hall of Fame and named a student award in her honor. From Livingstone College to the courtrooms of New York, Sigma Gamma Rho’s Ruth Whitehead Whaley opened doors for the Black women lawyers who came after her.