Judge Frank M. Johnson Jr., an alumni of The University of Alabama’s Law School, was honored at a symposium held all day Jan. 25.

The symposium was open to the public, and faculty of the law school, members of its official sponsor, the Alabama Law Review, the media and visiting faculty from other schools all attended the commemoration.

It was comprised of four panels, each taking the stage for over an hour. Speakers on the panels hailed from the Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr. School of Law, as well as professors of law from schools such as Emory University, Yale University and University of California, Berkeley. The event ran throughout the day and covered all aspects of his influence.

Abby Fox, a doctoral candidate of UA’s Law School, said Johnson “fundamentally reshaped the face of civil rights and civil liberties over his four decades on the bench, drafting landmark decisions on desegregation, voting rights, women’s rights, gay rights, protections for prisoners and the mentally ill and the list goes on.”

Johnson’s significance, according to the medley of presenters, did not just come from a few cases; Rather, it stemmed from his willingness to endure the tribulation of upholding civil liberties, regardless of race, in a time when they were not popular.

Berkeley’s Herma Hill Kay Distinguished Professor of Law Kathy Abrams spoke of Johnson as defending against “first generation tactics of vote denial,” particularly in what she called his “most important” opinions in the area of voting rights given in the cases United States v. Alabama and United States v. Penton.

Abrams explained why his fight was necessary with a description of cases in which Alabama lawmakers used various methods to infringe on voters’ rights.

“Alabama and Penton were spectacular cases, textbook illustrations of the exceptional lengths to which local registrars were willing to go to prevent African-American citizens from exercising their right to vote,” Abrams said.

Stuart Rachels, an associate professor of philosophy at the University, asks the question in his Honors Introduction to Ethics course, “Who was the best person to ever graduate from The University of Alabama?”

Regardless of students’ answers, Rachels’ answer remains the same, claiming that Judge Johnson was the best human being to graduate the University.

“He was willing to do the right thing and put himself at risk,” Rachels said.