Kunstler, William Moses (1919-1995)
Item
Title
Kunstler, William Moses (1919-1995)
Subject
Description
William Moses Kunstler was an attorney and civil rights activist. Kunstler graduated from Yale before serving in World War II in the Philippines. He graduated from Columbia Law School in 1948. He taught at Pace College's Business School and New York Law School in the 1950s. Kunstler helped the Civil Rights Movement members with legal cases and was acquainted with Martin Luther King Jr. He was director of the American Civil Liberties Union from 1964 to 1972. He co-founded the Center for Constitutional Rights.
Kunstler is well-known for defending members of the Black Panther Party, the Attica Prison rioters, Yusef Salaam of the Central Park Five cases, El Sayyid Nosair who was charged with the assassination of Rabbi Meir Kahane, and the Chicago Seven cases. Kunstler represented Englewood parents in their legal efforts to desegregate Englewood schools. He represented the Spruills who in 1962 filed a petition with the NJ State Board of Education to end segregation in Englewood. He represented the family at the hearings in Hackensack.
He married Lotte Rosenberger in 1943. After they divorced in 1976 he married Margaret L. Ratner. He had four daughters, Karin Goldman, Jane Drazek, Sarah, and Emily.
Stout, David. "William Kunstler, 76, Dies; Lawyer for Social Outcasts." The New York Times, 5 Sept. 1995, p.B6.
Kunstler is well-known for defending members of the Black Panther Party, the Attica Prison rioters, Yusef Salaam of the Central Park Five cases, El Sayyid Nosair who was charged with the assassination of Rabbi Meir Kahane, and the Chicago Seven cases. Kunstler represented Englewood parents in their legal efforts to desegregate Englewood schools. He represented the Spruills who in 1962 filed a petition with the NJ State Board of Education to end segregation in Englewood. He represented the family at the hearings in Hackensack.
He married Lotte Rosenberger in 1943. After they divorced in 1976 he married Margaret L. Ratner. He had four daughters, Karin Goldman, Jane Drazek, Sarah, and Emily.
Stout, David. "William Kunstler, 76, Dies; Lawyer for Social Outcasts." The New York Times, 5 Sept. 1995, p.B6.
“Kunstler, William Moses.” The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute.
"William Kunstler dies." The Standard-Star, 5 Sept. 1995, p.B2.
Creator
unknown
Date
March 2, 1970
Birth Date
1919-07-07
Birthplace
New York, New York, USA
Death Date
1995-09-04
Source of File Attached
“William Kunstler.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 9 June 2024.
Collection
Citation
unknown, “Kunstler, William Moses (1919-1995),” Englewood Makes History, accessed October 1, 2026, https://archive.englewoodmakeshistory.org/items/show/639.
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