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Home • News

Ketanji Brown Jackson Sworn In To Supreme Court As First Black Woman Justice

After 223 years, Jackson is officially the first Black woman to serve on the highest court in the nation.
Ketanji Brown Jackson Sworn In To Supreme Court As First Black Woman Justice
WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 30: In this handout provided by the Supreme Court, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. (R) administers the Constitutional Oath to Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson (L) in the West Conference Room of the Supreme Court on June 30, 2022 in Washington, DC. Jackson was sworn in as the newest Supreme Court Justice today, replacing the now-retired Justice Stephen G. Breyer. (Photo by Fred Schilling/Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States via Getty Images)
By Bry'onna Mention · Updated July 1, 2022

Ketanji Brown Jackson was sworn as the 116th Supreme Court justice and the first Black woman to serve on the high court on Thursday afternoon. Jackson, 51, replaced Justice Stephen Breyer, who she clerked for during the Supreme Court’s 1999-2000 term. Breyer’s retirement was effective at noon.

This is the first time in history where white men are not the majority on the Supreme Court. Jackson joins three other women justices—Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett. It’s the first time four women will serve together on the nine-member court.

Jackson’s appointment came after a campaign promise by then-candidate Joe Biden. When Justice Stephen Breyer, 83 announced his retirement in January 2022, the opportunity for Biden to follow through with the promise, finally presented itself. After a contentious confirmation process, the Senate confirmed Jackson’s nomination in early April, by a 53-47 mostly party-line vote that included support from three Republicans.

As she was sworn in by Roberts and Breyer, Jackson’s husband, Dr. Patrick Jackson, held the two stack bibles. One was a family bible, the other one was donated to the Supreme Court by Justice John Marshall Harlan. 

During his 34-year tenure on the court, Harlan, known as the “Great Dissenter.” Justice Harlan was the only justice to vote no in 1896 in Plessy v. Ferguson, which upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation under the “separate but equal” doctrine. 

“With a full heart, I accept the solemn responsibility of supporting and defending the Constitution of the United States and administering justice without fear or favor, so help me God,” Jackson said in a written statement. “I am truly grateful to be part of the promise of our great Nation.”

Jackson is the first justice, in 55 years, since Thurgood Marshall—the first Black justice appointed—to be appointed with experience as a criminal defense lawyer. 

According to AP News, all the justices except for Neil Gorsuch attended the swearing-in. There was no immediate explanation for Gorsuch’s absence.

TOPICS:  First Black woman SCOTUS Ketanji Brown Jackson SCOTUS
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