Ketanji Brown Jackson Becomes First Black Female Supreme Court Justice: Ketanji Brown Jackson, a former public defender who ascended through the ranks to become a judge on a prominent federal appeals court, made history on Thursday when she became the first woman of African descent to be appointed to a seat on the Supreme Court.
Jackson, who was born in Miami and had his legal training at Harvard, has been confirmed by the Senate and will soon fill the seat that Associate Justice Stephen Breyer has held for the past 28 years. Jackson is currently 51 years old. The announcement of Breyer’s retirement in January made it possible for President Joe Biden to nominate Jackson as his first choice to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States.
Jackson, who was formerly a judge on the influential U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, took the oath of office during a tumultuous time for the Supreme Court of the United States. The court’s decisions to overturn Roe v. Wade and expand access to handguns have exacerbated tensions among the justices and highlighted divisions among Americans over culture war issues. Jackson took the oath of office at a time when the court was
But none of that was on show as Chief Justice John Roberts administered one oath of office to Jackson and Breyer – for whom Jackson clerked more than 20 years ago – administered the other oath of office to Jackson. With that, Jackson was elevated to the position of 104th associate judge, marking the first time that there are more women and people of color on the court than there are white men.
In a statement that was sent by the court during the event, Jackson was quoted as saying, “I am genuinely grateful to be a part of the promise of our wonderful nation.”
Roberts made this observation in a few brief words before the oaths were taken. He emphasized that Jackson was now able to carry out her responsibilities as a justice. That will provide Jackson the opportunity to organize her chambers and her staff in advance of the beginning of what is likely to be an extremely demanding term in the fall.
In his speech, Chief Justice John Roberts said, “I am glad to welcome Justice Jackson to the court and to our common calling.”
For the first time in the court’s 233-year history, there will be four women and two African Americans sitting on the nation’s highest bench when the justices return to Washington in October with Jackson in her seat. This will be the case even though the court has been around for 233 years.
In a statement that was sent by the court, Justice Breyer was quoted as saying that the candidate’s “hard work, ethics, and brilliance have earned her a position on this court.” “I am thankful that America exists. Ketanji will interpret the law in a way that is both wise and fair, which will assist in making the law work more effectively for the American people, whom the law serves.”
What you need to know about the upcoming Supreme Court justice, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s biography
To quote her: “We sat through a total of 14 hours of Jackson’s remarks.” This is what we have picked up.
Insight: After the proceedings, various experts discuss how President Jackson might understand the Constitution.
Jackson was approved by the Senate with a vote of 53 to 47, and he received support from three Republican senators in addition to the support of all Democratic senators. It is not anticipated that Jackson will shift the court’s tendency toward conservatism in any way, as she will be succeeding Breyer, who was selected by President Bill Clinton. Jackson is relatively youthful for a justice on the Supreme Court and has the potential to serve for decades.
According to a statement released by Vice President Joe Biden, the Supreme Court has “just gained a colleague with a world-class intellect, the dignified temperament the American people expect of a justice, and the strongest credentials possible.” The knowledge and experience that Justice Jackson possesses will continue to be a source of pride for all of us for a great many years to come.
Despite the fact that most Republicans lauded Jackson’s demeanor, some of them accused her of being too lenient toward criminals and questioned her participation in defending alleged terrorists who were labelled as enemy combatants following the 9/11 attacks. Jackson breezed through the hearings despite the fact that some of the criticism that was levelled at him was severe and, according to Democrats, unfair.
Jackson announced in March that she will recuse herself from a case currently pending before the Supreme Court that challenges the affirmative action policies at Harvard College and at the University of North Carolina. This decision was made due to the fact that Jackson served on the board of overseers for Harvard University. It is anticipated that oral arguments will take held during the fall for this appeal.
The Supreme Court will hear a number of other important cases during the next term, including one that addresses the question of whether or not state courts have the authority to review state election rules at the federal level, as well as another that examines whether or not businesses have the right to refuse matrimonial services to same-sex couples.
Jackson will make history by being the first person to ever have served as a federal public defender to be appointed to the Supreme Court. The United States Sentencing Commission is a bipartisan institution that is responsible for making recommendations regarding criminal sentences handed down in federal courts. She will be the only justice on the commission with prior experience. On a court where many of her colleagues worked in presidential administrations before becoming appeals court judges, Jackson will be one of two justices – along with Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor – to have served as a trial court judge. This is in contrast to the majority of her colleagues, who all worked in presidential administrations before becoming appeals court judges.
Defendant: If confirmed, Jackson would become the first federal public defender for the Supreme Court.
Justice: A review of Jackson’s rulings reveals that the consequences go both ways
Diversity: Breaking new ground has presented Black female judges with both opportunities and challenges.
Conservatives have voiced their disapproval of some of Jackson’s decisions, including one from 2019 in which she declared that Don McGahn, President Donald Trump’s former White House counsel, was required to testify as part of an impeachment investigation being conducted by Congress. She was also criticized by those on the right for her decision to rule against a Trump effort to expand the number of immigrants in the country illegally who would be subjected to expedited deportation. This move was intended to expand the number of people who would be subjected to expedited deportation.
These same detractors almost never brought up previous instances in which Jackson took Trump’s side, such as when he defended the president against legal challenges to his divisive border wall. In a different decision, she decided that certain individuals claiming asylum were subject to a more expedited removal process under federal immigration law.
Jackson will take his seat on the court after a historic term in which tensions between the justices were brought into the open, a dramatic leak of a draught opinion in the abortion case undermined confidence in the court’s protocols, and protests erupted in response to the leak, including some that took place outside the homes of the justices themselves. Jackson will be the first African-American justice to serve on the Supreme Court.
After her confirmation, she has remained silently observant of the subsequent events, which has placed her in the peculiar position of being a confirmed member of the Supreme Court but without a real seat on the court for several months. Breyer had always planned to retire at the end of the term; however, his decision to do so only became public in January, which prompted Senate Democrats, who hold the smallest possible majority, to move swiftly to confirm her. Breyer had always intended to retire at the conclusion of the term.
“Justice Jackson’s swearing in reflects a long overdue but welcome historic milestone,” said Elizabeth Wydra from the leftist Constitutional Accountability Center. “Justice Jackson’s swearing in reflects a long overdue but welcome historic milestone.” She will be joining a court that is at a historic crossroads, with two dramatically different perspectives of the Constitution and our society being represented by the conservative majority and more liberal dissenters. “She will join a court at a historic crossroads, too.”
