NEWS
EVENTS
Young Influential black people: Gabrielle Turnquest
We want to shine the spotlight on influential black people in this current day and Gabrielle Turnquest is the focus on this occasion.
In 2013, at the age of 18, Turnquest became the youngest person to be called to the bar in England and Wales - making her the youngest ever barrister.
In the 600 year history of one of the professions that shape the world we live in, Gabrielle is not only the youngest female to be called to the bar, but also the youngest black female ever.
The ‘Bar’ is an exam taken by students studying law that determine whether a candidate is qualified to practice law in a given jurisdiction. The average law student passes the bar around the age of 27.
Gabrielle had already marked her place in the history at her previous university, Liberty University in Virginia, where she was the youngest person to finish an undergraduate degree there, in psychology, at the age of 16.
At the age of 18 she was unable to work as a barrister without carrying out a pupillage at a chambers for at least a year before being granted a tenancy.
She initially came to train to pass the bar in Britain so she could return back to her native country of the Bahamas to pursue a profession as a barrister over there.
She’s just another positive example to the young black youth that through applying yourself and working hard at whatever it is you may do, you can also leave your mark and make history doing what you love.
At the time Gabrielle didn’t even realise she was the youngest person ever to pass such an exam, how about that eh?
