Lost in history — that’s what Lena Olive Smith almost was until Ann Juergen started looking into the woman’s prolific past. Though there were members of the Black community who knew of her legacy, when Juergen started her research in the early 90’s, there were little to no written records of Smith.
“I went to a conference in Washington, D.C., and a venerated, distinguished Black professor by the name of J. Clay Smith was writing a book, ‘Emancipation: The making of the Black lawyer 1844-1944.’ He saw me, that I was from William Mitchell [Law School], and he said, ‘One of the people I’m trying to find out more about, historically, is this woman lawyer – Lena O. Smith, who went to your law school.’
“And I said, ‘When I go back home, I’ll look her up and see what we have on her and share it with you.’ Because I didn’t know Lena Smith. I went back home and nobody knew a thing. So I thought if she’s the first Black woman lawyer in Minnesota, which J. Clay Smith thought, I needed to find out more about her.”
With the knowledge that Smith was a graduate of William Mitchell, known today as Mitchell Hamline Law School, Juergens looked into internal records that led her to Smith’s graduation information. From there, she dug deeper.
A grant from the historical society gave Juergens the opportunity to take a sabbatical in 1995. During this time she was led back to D.C., where she would learn even more about Smith through her involvement in the NAACP.
Often signing her name as L.O. Smith, she began her professional journey as a real estate agent in Minneapolis. Through this work, she witnessed firsthand the systemic barriers that African Americans faced in securing property and equitable housing.
Determined to effect change, Smith enrolled in the Northwestern College of Law, attending night classes while continuing her real estate endeavors during the day. Both her office and classes were conveniently located in the Plymouth Building on 6th and Hennepin.
In 1921, she graduated and became the first Black woman licensed to practice law in Minnesota. From there, she advocated for fair housing long before the Fair Housing Act of 1968 and broke down barriers for the Black community in media, education and society.
Championing civil rights in the courtroom
Smith’s legal career was marked by unwavering advocacy for her community. Through her education, involvement in the NAACP, and untiring effort, Smith leveraged every resource available to her to balance the justice scale for her people.
One of her most notable cases in her 45-year legal career involved representing the Lee family in 1931. The Lees, an African American family, had moved into a predominantly white neighborhood in South Minneapolis, sparking hostility and violent threats from white residents.
Smith, serving as their attorney and as president of the Minneapolis NAACP, defended the Lees against both legal and extralegal attempts to force them from their home. Prior to this, the Lee family was provided a lawyer by the American Legion who encouraged them to sell and move out.
“Arthur Lee had served in WW1 and was in the American Legion. The American Legion provided him with an attorney; H.E. Maag. But that attorney was like, ‘Look, I’m going to get you some time, some money, and then you can move.
“And Lena — they were members of the NAACP — she talked to the Lees and said, ‘If you move and let them buy you out, you are just supporting their narrative that Black people move into white neighborhoods just to be bought out at a higher price than they paid and make money. And that isn’t true.’
“Then you have Arthur Lee quoted in the newspaper saying, ‘Nobody asked me to move out when I was fighting for this country in France… All I want is my home, and I have a right to establish one and live in it.’ However, the media reported his former attorney’s words instead, that the Lees would move for the right price,” Juergen said.
In the end Smith’s efforts not only protected the Lee family’s rights but also highlighted the pervasive racial tensions in Northern cities from the neighborhoods to the newsrooms. Today the Lees’ home, located at 4600 Columbus Avenue South, as well as Smith’s located at 3905 5th Ave. S., are recognized as historical places.
Smith’s involvement in the NAACP is essential to highlight; she joined in the 1920s as the head of the Legal Redress Committee. Her strong legal reputation soon led her to serve as president of the Minneapolis chapter from 1930 to 1939, before heading the Redress Committee again in 1940.
In another significant case, Smith and the NAACP worked hard to protect the safety and reputation of Black people as they fought against the public viewing of the 1930 film, “Birth of a Nation.” In her fight against the media, Smith wrote an affidavit stating, “It is historically false as characterizing the Southern negro as brutal, inhumane, and treacherous, as a ‘humiliating caricature of the Colored Race’…the play has a tendency to result in despairing remarks regarding negroes and subjecting them to indignities in public places.’”
Smith and other public figures lobbied with the help of legislators to ensure the movie was not shown. This battle was settled when a local theatre finally surrendered after its license was threatened by the city.
Challenging the racial landscape
In the early 20th Century, the prevailing narrative suggested that racism was predominantly a Southern affliction, with the North perceived as a haven of equality and progress. However, this perception often obscured the subtle yet pervasive forms of racial discrimination that existed above the Mason-Dixon Line (a demarcation line separating four U.S. states).
Minnesota, with its seemingly progressive stance, was no exception. Despite laws prohibiting segregation and promoting civil rights, African Americans in Minnesota frequently encountered exclusionary practices in housing, employment, and public accommodations.
Furthermore, the 1920 Duluth lynchings, where three Black men were brutally murdered by a white mob, starkly highlighted that racial violence was not confined to the South. This dichotomy between perception and reality set the stage for changemakers like Lena Olive Smith, who confronted these injustices head-on.
Smith herself experienced discrimination; during her law school years, she was denied entry to a theater based on her race. Undeterred, she sued the establishment under Minnesota’s Public Accommodations Act, challenging the status quo and advocating for equal treatment.
There are many parallels between then and now as pertains to the covert nature of racism in Minnesota. However, with Lena Smith etched into the history of law and order, she will forever serve as inspiration for aspiring Black professionals and as an example of what is possible when you embody the spirit of relentlessness and courage.
Kiara Williams welcomes reader responses to kwilliams@spokesman-recorder.com.