Eric Holder
A groundbreaking Attorney General who navigated high-stakes legal battles and championed civil rights, reshaping the Justice Department's role in a polarized era.
Born 1951 (age 75)·American lawyer·Birthday: January 21·Baby Boomers
Biography
Eric Holder's career is a study in breaking barriers and weathering political storms. A graduate of Columbia Law, he cut his teeth as a public corruption prosecutor before being appointed as a Superior Court judge in Washington D.C. His path through the Justice Department was historic, culminating in his 2009 appointment as the first Black U.S. Attorney General. His tenure was defined by formidable challenges: he oversaw the prosecution of terrorism cases, defended the Affordable Care Act, and launched investigations into police departments following civil unrest. Holder pursued a robust civil rights agenda, challenging voting restrictions and advocating for sentencing reform. After leaving office, he remained a forceful voice on legal and political issues, leading national redistricting efforts and continuing to argue for equity within the justice system he once led.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Eric was born in 1951, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Eric Was Born
The biggest hits of 1951
#1 Movie
Quo Vadis
Best Picture
An American in Paris
#1 TV Show
Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts
Eric's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1951Born
First color TV broadcast in the US
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Too Young" — Nat King ColeBest Picture: An American in Paris
1956Started school
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1964Became a teenager
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1967Could drive
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1969Could vote
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1972Turned 21
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1981Turned 30
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1991Turned 40
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2001Turned 50
September 11 attacks transform the world
Gas: $1.46/galHome: $126,400Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Hanging by a Moment" — LifehouseBest Picture: A Beautiful Mind
2011Turned 60
Osama bin Laden killed; Arab Spring sweeps the Middle East
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $138,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Rolling in the Deep" — AdeleBest Picture: The Artist
2021Turned 70
January 6 Capitol breach; COVID vaccines roll out globally
Gas: $3.01/galHome: $298,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Levitating" — Dua LipaBest Picture: CODA
2026Age 75 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as the 82nd United States Attorney General, the first African American to hold the office.
- Oversaw the operation that led to the death of Osama bin Laden in 2011.
- Initiated the 'Smart on Crime' initiative to reduce harsh mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenses.
- Launched numerous civil rights investigations into local police departments, including in Ferguson, Missouri.
- Successfully defended the Voting Rights Act before the Supreme Court in the case of Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1 v. Holder.
Did You Know?
He was a primary school classmate of the singer and actress Debbie Allen.
Holder is an avid basketball fan and played point guard in high school.
He served as a senior legal advisor to Barack Obama during his 2008 presidential campaign.
In 2014, he became the first sitting Attorney General to be held in contempt of Congress.
“Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards.”
