We deeply mourn the loss of Professor Charles Ogletree, a legal genius, luminary, a warm and extraordinary humanitarian and a kind and considerate individual who always had time for justice and always had time to be helpful.
Professor Charles Ogletree’s legal career spans decades, not only his legal career and his impact but his efforts to bring along others in the legal field by providing opportunities for mentorship, teaching, personal investment in a generation of new legal experts, new legal warriors in the pursuit of justice and in the pursuit of human dignity.
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From a position of public defender to law professor extraordinaire, Professor Ogletree has been a force in the legal and humanitarian world for decades, especially walking the long road of black legal competence and representation.
Carib News met Professor Ogletree through the introduction of Harry Belafonte to look at legal work that we required. In spite of his heavy schedule, he arranged a meeting at his office at Harvard University and he invested his time on a Saturday to go over a legal situation at the request of Mr. Belafonte. In order to make an assessment, we spent a couple of hours together where he listened generously, asking questions carefully, in an atmosphere of understanding, warmth and compassion.
Despite his heavy commitment in many areas, he decided that the situation we faced was something he would want to be a part of and the minute he said he would represent us as part of the team, a relief came over the entire delegation.
We had the best legal mind working with us, and that had an impact on every turn and then every situation that we faced. That was the power Professor Ogletree! But what was more striking was the humanitarian connection that he made, it was not just a legal piece, it was how he treated us, giving us a sense of family.
Before long, we were invited to his sessions on Martha’s Vineyard. He was accompanying us on our annual conference to Jamaica, and at the conference itself even when he was not scheduled to address the group. He found time to work with local organizations around different issues and two fellowships from Harvard came out of that visit on the effort of Professor Ogletree.
He accompanied us to Haiti on the conference one time. We had the good fortune to have his wife Pam with us and he had indicated to us that Pam was already working with Haitians in Boston but wanted no publicity, and it was their custom to each have their own track of activities; we asked her to and discuss the issues of Haiti and the potential of the diaspora, and she did a marvelous job. You could see the pride on Professor Ogletree, just so proud of his wife as she delivered a sterling talk. When our eyes met, he just nodded in appreciation of what we had talked about her own ability.
So, the relationship grew well beyond legal representation to family connection, and the measure of the man became so obvious and so enriching in so many ways. When he became ill with dementia, it was a painful experience when we visited him.
We mourn deeply for our loss but even moreso for the country and the world of a man who was so committed to justice and humanitarianism that the mourning is intense. We mourn with his family, his wife Pam, his children, and grandchildren, and we can all be proud and comforted by the measure of a man who has done so much for so many. We are just happy to testify to is greatness. He will live forever in our memory and in the memories of so many of whom he has touched.
