This collection of essays chronicles the life and accomplishments of the attorney who led the struggle for desegregation in South Carolina, served as a primary legal advocate in the national civil rights movement, and became South Carolina's first African American U.S. District Court judge. Although Perry is well known in his home state he is sometimes obscured on the national stage by the shadows of Thurgood Marshall, J. Waties Waring, and Charles Hamilton Houston.

An 8-volume reference set containing over 4,000 entries written by distinguished scholars, 'The African American National Biography' is the most significant and expansive compilation of black lives in print today.

Contains laws, legislative history, administrative regulations, lists of committees, proclamations, executive messages and orders.