Equal rights fight a labor of love for Mass. anti-bias chief
Photo By Talia Whyte
By Talia Whyte
The Bay State Banner
Fighting for the rights of society’s marginalized members has been Malcolm S. Medley’s passion since he was a teenager.
As a 15-year-old black boy whose family had just come to the U.S. from Jamaica, Medley attended Boston’s schools in the aftermath of the heated fight over school desegregation. At Hyde Park High School in the early 1980s, Medley says he recalls being told by his guidance counselor that he couldn’t become a lawyer because of his race, and that he should consider other careers more suitable for black people.
“It became clear to me at that time that not everyone is racially sensitive,” Medley said. “But I didn’t let that deter me. I am one of those people that if you tell me I can’t do something, I will do it.”
A man of his word, Medley went on to earn a bachelor’s degree at Northeastern University and a J.D. from Boston University School of Law. Later, he worked as a civil rights lawyer before accepting an appointment to become the chairman of the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD).
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