The Judge Frank Johnson Institute Interview with J. Mason Davis, Jr.

How has the U.S. Constitution changed, and what does it mean for those who live in our country? To find out, the Johnson Institute went to an expert, J. Mason Davis, Jr., to discuss the 2022 Law Day theme, “Toward a More Perfect Union: The Constitution in Times of Change.”

Davis, now retired, spent his career as an attorney in Birmingham Alabama. “He was involved in some of the most significant controversies in the civil rights struggle. As the attorney for a number of students who participated in the widely publicized Huntsville lunch counter sit-ins in 1961 and 1962, Davis played a key role in the desegregation of Alabama. In recognition of his conspicuous contributions in advancing racial reconciliation, his family was pictured on Time magazine’s cover in 1974,” as his bio states.

This interview, conducted by a middle school social studies teacher, Brittany Hamner of Erwin Middle School of Center Point, Alabama, is geared to middle and high school students. Teachers can watch the video in class or assign it as homework, and use the questions below to generate discussion.