The Fred Gray Civil Rights Writing Competition is a new national writing competition honoring the extraordinary contributions of Fred Gray to the civil rights movement. Fred Gray is a renowned civil rights attorney who played a pivotal role in numerous landmark cases that helped dismantle segregation and advance the cause of racial justice in America. Notably, he represented Rosa Parks, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the victims of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study.

Texas Tech University School of Law has partnered with The Lanier Law Firm and the Fred D. Gray Institute for Human and Civil Rights to offer this writing competition to law students around the nation. Detailed information about the writing competition, including the essay topic guidelines and submission process, is available HERE (e.g., essays must be between 5,000 and 8,000 words, and the submission deadline is 11:59 p.m. (CST) on Friday, February 28, 2025.)

Law students will be awarded the following monetary prizes for their winning essays: $7,500 (first place), $5,000 (second place), and $2,500 (third place).

If you have any questions about the writing competition, please contact Associate Dean Wendy A. Humphrey at wendy.humphrey@ttu.edu or (806) 834-4446.