Republican senators questioned Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s qualifications during her confirmation hearings last week—with some implying that empathy and personal experience should not factor in to judgements. But the truth is, the Supreme Court’s decisions have always been informed by the justice’s identities.
Tag: Ketanji Brown Jackson
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Unwavering Composure: Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation
Weekend Reading for Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation.
This week: Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was a “model of composure” in the face of “egregious behavior” from some Republican senators; the “exhaustion of being the first Black women”; the impact of switching from gender ‘discrimination’ to gender ‘privilege’; women’s representation in post-Soviet states; how the Oscar winner for Best Picture will be decided using ranked-choice voting; rest in power Madeleine Albright, who knew how to “move beyond her talking points and to engage her counterparts in frank oval-table bargaining”; and more.
Dear America: Get Your Knee Off Our Necks
As I witnessed several U.S. senators smear and disrespect Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson during her confirmation hearings, I wanted to shout these words: “America, get your knee off our necks.”
Jackson should be confirmed with an overwhelming bipartisan vote. However, that’s not the world in which we find ourselves, But history will soon be made, and Judge Jackson will become Justice Jackson—with a bipartisan vote. And from henceforth all Black women and girls will finally see themselves on our highest court.
The Supreme Mom Guilt Is Real: Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson and Motherhood
During her historic confirmation hearings, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson saved a “special moment” to address her two daughters directly: “Girls, I know it has not been easy as I have tried to navigate the challenges of juggling my career and motherhood. And I fully admit that I did not always get the balance right.”
Imagine being at the pinnacle of your career, writing a speech that would be heard by millions—but, at the same time, apologizing to your daughters, for whom you wished you’d done more. Like many other working moms, I could imagine just that. But, in many ways, what Jackson was expressing is unique to Black women.
Judge Jackson’s Nomination Bends the Arc of the Moral Universe Toward Justice
On March 21, 1965, thousands of marchers left Selma, Alabama, headed to the capital city of Montgomery in their quest for the freedom to vote. Fifty-seven years later—on March 21, 2022—the Senate Judiciary Committee will consider, for the first time, the nomination of a Black woman to serve on the highest court in our nation.
What Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Nomination Means for Representation and Justice: Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation
Weekend Reading for Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation.
This week: women leaders urge swift confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson; Jackson’s confirmation would bring the Court close to gender balance; Anita Hill on the value of having Judge Jackson’s perspective on the Supreme Court; 19 states have zero Black women in the state senate; how ranked-choice voting would eliminate the need for costly second round primary runoffs; the California law that requires companies to appoint women to their corporate boards; a women’s history month Spotify preparations; over 45 women will be speaking next week at RepresentWomen’s Democracy Solutions Summit March 8–10 … join us!
Feminists React: Biden Nominates Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to Supreme Court—the First Black Woman Nominee
On Friday, President Joe Biden announced he would be nominating Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to fill Justice Stephen Breyer’s vacancy on the Supreme Court. Feminist groups and lawmakers applauded the nomination, citing Jackson’s qualifications and previous clerkship under Breyer as proof that she is more than qualified for the role.