Ketanji Brown Jackson became, this Thursday (30), the first black judge to serve on the US Supreme Court in the institution’s 233-year history.
Jackson, 51, was sworn in and was sworn in at around 12pm (1pm GMT). She was sworn to uphold the US Constitution and administer justice impersonally and impartially, and did not speak at the event, which lasted a few minutes and was held inside the Supreme Court. The magistrate will have a lifetime term, as will the other eight members of the court.
Her appointment was made by President Joe Biden in February and she was approved by the Senate in April. In the Sabbaths, she was under a lot of pressure and even cried when she received praise for her trajectory.
His entry, however, does not change the current division of the Court, which has a majority of six conservative judges and three of a more liberal position. She replaced Stephen Breyer, 83, who has retired.
Breyer left office at the end of the 2021-2022 tenure, in which the Supreme Court made several decisions that pleased conservatives, such as lifting restrictions on carrying guns and withdrawing the constitutional right to abortion, reversing a decision the court itself made. for nearly 50 years.
Among the latest decisions, the court concluded on Thursday that the EPA (federal environmental protection agency) has no power to limit pollutant emissions from power plants. The collegiate understood that only Congress, or the plants themselves, can impose these limits. As a result, the Biden administration will have fewer tools to fight the increase in pollution and, consequently, climate change.
In another ruling this last day of work, the judges gave the go-ahead for the Biden administration to end a program that left asylum seekers in the US to wait for a response in Mexico, in often overcrowded shelters. The program was created by former President Donald Trump in 2019. Biden tried to end the program, but Texas officials went to court to keep the initiative in place.
The Supreme Court has the final word on legal matters in the US and has the power to decide which cases it wants to hear. The list of upcoming topics should be released by October, when a new work period begins.
This Thursday, the court anticipated that it will analyze a case on the holding of elections in the country. Depending on the decision, state officials may have more power to change the rules of the voting system. This would open up room for maneuvers such as making access to the vote more difficult or redistributing electoral districts to favor one party. The changes could affect the 2024 presidential election.
The newest member of the Supreme Court was born in Washington in 1970, the daughter of a lawyer and a school principal. Her parents attended segregated schools in the South, where white and black students were supposed to go to different institutions. Afterwards, they attended universities aimed at blacks and began their careers as professors in the public network of Miami.
Jackson grew up in Miami, excelling in debate and public speaking tournaments, and studied law at Harvard. After graduating, she was an assistant to a few judges, including Breyer, who is now retiring. In the 2000s, she alternated periods as a lawyer and public defender, in which she served people without money.
In 2009, she was nominated by Obama for the vice presidency of the body responsible for defining the bases for federal sentences. During her tenure, the department recommended reducing penalties for crimes related to drug possession. She then moved on to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, where she reviewed cases involving acts of the Presidency.
The new judge is only the third black person to be appointed to the Supreme Court. The first was Thurgood Marshall, who was nominated in 1967 — he retired in 1991 and died in 1993. The second is Clarence Thomas, who has held the position since 1991.
Among women, the first to reach the post was Sandra O’Connor, in 1981. Since then, another four have passed through the court. With the arrival of Jackson, the court will have nearly gender parity, with five men and four women, for the first time.
WHO IS WHO IN THE SUPREME COURT
conservative wing
John Roberts67
Nominated by George W. Bush in 2005. Although considered conservative, the current president of the Court sometimes acts in a moderate way
Clarence Thomas73
Nominated by George Bush in 1991
Samuel Alito71
Nominated by George W. Bush in 2006
Neil Gorsuch54
Nominated by Donald Trump in 2017
Brett Kavanaugh57
Nominated by Trump in 2018
Amy Coney Barrett50
Nominated by Trump in 2020
progressive wing
Sonia Sotomayor, 67
Nominated by Barack Obama in 2009
Elena Kagan, 61
Nominated by Obama in 2010​
Ketanji Brown Jackson51
Nominated by Joe Biden in 2022
