William H. Hastie was a civil rights advocate, governor of the United States Virgin Islands, lawyer, and judge. He served as a United States circuit judge and a federal appellate judge for 5 years. He was born in Knoxville, Tennessee where he graduated from a top academic school, Dunbar High School. William Hastie has three college degrees, including a Bachelor of Laws from Harvard. William began to enter the private practice of law in Washington, D.C. as an assistant solicitor from 1930-1937.
In 1937 William Hastie was appointed to the District Court of the Virgin Islands. This made him the first African American Federal judge, which led to a lot of controversy. From 1940 to 1942 William Hastie was a civilian aide that fought for equal treatment
