There all the honor lies : act well your part : a memoir

This autobiography of the first permanently appointed female African American judge in Texas, Harriet M. Murphy, is the story not only of an African American woman who grew up in the 1930s and 1940s, but of the civil rights movement. Judge Murphy began fighting injustice and inequality early in her life. Through her work with the NAACP and the Urban League, she sought social change at the local level. She recounts meetings with civil rights icons, including W. E. B. DuBois, Martin Luther King Jr., and Thurgood Marshall. Though caught up in activism, she found time to pursue her dream of becoming a lawyer. There All the Honor Lies details some of Murphy's most notable accomplishments, including instituting a partial payment plan for constituents who were fined by the municipal court and chairing the city of Austin's first detoxification task force. Since retiring from the bench, Murphy has run for the Austin City Council and been inducted into the National Bar Association Hall of Fame.

• Foreword " p. xi Phylicia Rashad
• Preface " p. xiii William Powers Jr.
• Acknowledgments p. xv
• Timeline: The Black Migration p. xvii
• Part I " Stony The Road p. 1
• Real and Necessary and Powerful Change p. 3
• Fulton County, Georgia p. 4
• Grade School p. 7
• Celebrating the Good Times p. 10
• A Fruitful Faith p. 11
• High School p. 13
• Atlanta's Caste System p. 16
• FIs for Fun p. 18
• Spending Money p. 20
• Playing Hooky p. 22
• Meeting W. E. B. Du Bois p. 24
• Other Formative Experiences from a Georgia Childhood p. 26
• The Spelman Years p. 28
• History and Government p. 31
• The Black Renaissance p. 33
• Mitchell versus UGA p. 36
• Thurgood to the Rescue p. 38
• Johns Hopkins University (JHU) Fellowship p. 40
• The Year of Benjamin Brown p. 43
• Part II " Early Career p. 47
• An Evening with MLK Jr. p. 49
• Mitchell, Meet Moore p. 51
• The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and More NAACP p. 53
• O. J.'s Death p. 55
• Law School at UT p. 57
• Mitchell, Meet Murphy p. 61
• One Last Bid for Change p. 65
• A Kerfuffle over the Bar Exam p. 66
• Huston-Tillotson Gets a Pre-Law Society p. 68
• Examining Apartheid in South Africa p. 69
• On Blood Diamonds p. 72
• Foreign Reaction to the Montgomery Bus Boycott p. 73
• Travel to Gratz, Austria p. 75
• Harriet Murphy, JD p. 77
• Why Black Lawyers Had It Harder p. 79
• Part III " Major Political Contributions p. 81
• Carter for the Win p. 83
• Murphy's Law p. 86
• Accomplishments from the Bench p. 90
• Here Come the judges p. 92
• "Retirement" p. 95
• Vacation Time! p. 97
• The O. J. Simpson Trial p. 99
• Abigail Fisher and the Top IO Percent Rule p. 102
• Judge Murphy Goes on Judge Judy p. 105
• Part IV " There All The Honor Lies p. 109
• Afterword p. 131
• Appendix I " Reverend Walter M. Mitchell Sr.: Minister and Civil Rights Activist p. 133
• Appendix II " List of Awards p. 139
• References p. 143