Thank you, Burke.

• Author: Katzenbach, Nicholas
• Position: Yale Law School professor Burke Marshall - Testimonial

History will record Burke Marshall as the architect and frequent implementer of the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations' successful breakup of the South's racial caste system and the country's start on the long road to Dr. King's colorblind society. But for those of us who knew him, Burke was simply a wonderful person who taught us all--students and friends alike--the fundamental values of the world we live in. It was not his extraordinary intelligence or analytical ability that made us love him. It was his humanity, his quiet sense of humor, and his willingness to share himself with us.

The other day I received a letter about Burke from a person I had never met. He wrote:

In 1968, I had the honor of working in the New York headquarters of the R.F.K. Presidential Campaign (licking stamps, sealing envelopes). Burke Marshall stopped by, and began answering phones--like the rest of us. He was always ready to demonstrate that neither station in life nor superior intellect took precedence over humility and civility. We all knew and loved that part of Burke. It existed alongside a courage and strength of character as great as any I have known. He married a woman whose character and principles were as strong and dedicated as his own, and through them that character and those principles have been passed on to three fine daughters.

Much has been and will be said here and elsewhere about Burke's great intellect and accomplishments. But perhaps one had to know him very well to perceive how he used his quiet and unassuming manner in an almost wily way. He came to my office in the Department of Justice one Saturday morning to tell me that our great Solicitor General, Archie Cox, was having trouble finding a constitutional basis that would protect the sit-ins of the time from prosecution under state trespass laws. We both went to see Archie and I spent my time telling him what a disaster such a failure would be. Burke--who understood people so well--knew that Archie would not be persuaded by my arguments and, of equal importance, would only be persuaded by Archie's own reasoning about the Constitution. Burke quietly ruminated about the law, sympathizing with Archie's problem and suggesting possible solutions so subtly that neither of us was aware...