Existing comment:
Nina Miglionico
1913-2009
Though short of stature, Nina Miglionico was a giant in the history of Birmingham. The child of Italian immigrant parents, she received her law degree from the University of Alabama School of Law in 1936 and became one of the first women attorneys in Alabama to establish her own law practice. Early in her career she recognized the transformative power of the law to change existing conditions. She worked to improve rights for women to own and inherit property and to serve on juries. She held progressive views on equality and race. In 1963 she was elected to the new Birmingham City Council, which abolished all segregation ordinances in the city of Birmingham. In 1965 she was the target of a bomb left on her front porch, which failed to explode. Undaunted, she continued her service for 20 more years and became the first woman to be President of the Birmingham City Council. She is recognized in the Alabama WOmen's and Lawyer's Halls of Fame. When she died in 2009 at age 95, Miss Nina had worked as an attorney for 73 years, making her the longest practicing female attorney in the history of Alabama.
Admired by her peers and beloved by her fellow citizens, Miss Nina was indomitable. |