Charles Carr, the grandson of a slave and a powerhouse in the fight for equal rights for African-Americans, earned his undergraduate degree at Fisk University in Nashville before graduating from John Marshall School of Law in 1926. As a new attorney, he helped form the Future Outlook League, an organization active in promoting black ownership of businesses and equal employment opportunity through boycotts, marches, and legal action. He established the firm of Carr, Jackson & Payne in 1954. As a 30-year veteran of the Cleveland City Council for Ward 17, Carr advanced legislation supporting fair housing, integration of city parks, and cancellation of the licenses of public employers refusing to hire African-Americans. He was elected Democratic majority leader of City Council in 1959, serving in that role for 13 years. After his stint on City Council, he sat on the Regional Transit Authority’s Board of Trustees until his death.