West Baltimore law office of Juanita Jackson Mitchell reopened

By Megan Sayles
AFRO Staff Writer
msayles@afro.com

Beloved Community Services Corp. (BCSC), a community development organization led by the Rev. Alvin C. Hathaway Sr., hosted a ribbon-cutting and dedication ceremony for the restored law office of civil rights trailblazer Juanita Jackson Mitchell in West Baltimore’s Upton neighborhood on June 26. Mitchell, who was the wife of NAACP lobbyist Clarence M. Mitchell Jr., was the first Black woman to practice law in the state of Maryland.

The building will soon house the University of Maryland, Baltimore’s Rebuild, Overcome and Rise (ROAR) Center, which offers free legal, case management and mental health services to  survivors of crime—a mission Hathaway says reflects Juanita Jackson Mitchell’s legacy. 

“When Beloved Community Services Corporation acquired the property, we knew of its history. We knew that it was Juanita Jackson Mitchell’s law office, and we knew the services and the strategic meaning of that space,” said Hathaway. “Our goal is to not only restore it but, in her spirit, provide legal services to that community once again.” 

Juanita Jackson Mitchell began operating her law office out of a rowhome on the 1200 block of Druid Hill Ave. in 1950 after becoming the first Black woman to graduate from University of Maryland School of Law. Over her decades-long career, she was instrumental in lawsuits that helped to eliminate segregation in parks and public schools across Baltimore and the state of Maryland. 

Keiffer Mitchell Jr., grandson of Juanita Jackson Mitchell, said his grandmother would have been overjoyed at the ceremony. He recalled visiting her office as a young person—noting that she often extended her work hours to the weekends for families to have greater access to services. 

“She wanted to make sure that the office was accessible to the people in the community and that she was there to help in any way she could,” said Keiffer Mitchell Jr.. “Hats off to Reverend Hathaway and the entire project team for honoring my grandmother by restoring that building.”

When BCSC acquired Juanita Jackson Mitchell’s office in 2022, the building was in severe disrepair after 20 years of sitting vacant. The nonprofit teamed up with construction industry veteran Marty Glaze to rehabilitate the property. 

“We were able to maintain and retain the historic exterior architecture, including the woodwork of the storefront, its doors and cornices,” said Hathaway. “Marty Glaze and his construction team did an amazing job transforming that building. When we purchased it, there was nothing but a roof. It had no floors or interior.” 

Now the restored office is part of a larger renaissance in the Upton neighborhood, which was once one of the most prominent, affluent African-American communities in the country. The community’s revival has been marked by several major developments in recent years, including the opening of the Justice Thurgood Marshall Amenity Center at P.S. 103 and the ongoing renovation of the historic Upton Mansion by Afro Charities, which will house the AFRO’s extensive archives. 

Hathaway hopes the revitalization efforts will inspire younger generations to carry the momentum forward. 

“When you take a step back and see the amount of investment that is now coming into a concentrated area, you can tell that this community is on the upswing,” said Hathaway. “I think what’s important about it is that we have to tell our story so that the new generation understands that they have a responsibility to grab the baton and run their leg of the race as well.” 

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