Public Reception Set Monday for Mercer, Silas Hunt Legacy Award Winner

Photo Submitted

Christopher C. Mercer

A public reception for Christopher C. Mercer, one of the six students who integrated the University of Arkansas School of Law, is planned for Monday, Feb. 20. Mercer is the recipient of one of the Silas Hunt Legacy Awards to be presented by the university at an event this spring.

The reception will be from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Monday in the Multicultural Center in the Arkansas Student Union. Chancellor G. David Gearhart, Vice Provost Charles Robinson and Mercer will speak.

The Silas Hunt Legacy Award recognizes African Americans whose significant achievements in life contribute to the community, the state and the nation. The award was created in honor of the first African American student to enroll in the University of Arkansas in modern times. 

Mercer was born in Pine Bluff, and, like Hunt, is one of the law school’s “Six Pioneers,” the first six African American students to enroll at University of Arkansas School of Law. During his time in law school, he supported himself by teaching biology, chemistry and math classes including a business class for veterans at Carver High School in Marked Tree.

After graduating from the law school in 1955 and passing the bar exam with the highest score in his group, Mercer went on to play an integral part in the legal community and in the civil rights struggle in the state of Arkansas. He was a pivotal figure in the integration of Little Rock Central High School, serving as aide-de-camp for Daisy Bates and transporting the “Little Rock Nine” to and from school each day their first semester. In addition, he was a member of the Arkansas Council on Human Relations and served as the Arkansas field secretary for the NAACP.

Mercer was the first African American in the South to serve as a deputy prosecutor and continues to practice the law after more than 57 years, often representing clients of modest means. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the university in May 2011.