Ketanji Brown Jackson, a Washington, D.C. judge and former defense attorney, has been nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court by President Joe Biden. She is the first black woman to receive this honor, and the first defender to win the nod since Thurgood Marshall, who retired in 1991.

Brown Jackson is a graduate of Harvard Law School and clerked for Justice Stephen Breyer. She began serving on an appellate court in 2013 and a district court in 2021.

“It’s a long time coming,” said local NAACP President Esther Lee. “I see her as an individual who is prepared for a vocation, and I’m sure she’s going to contribute to that court. It certainly will be a little more balanced than just having Clarence Thomas on there.

“I’m excited for her.”

M. Reyah Levy, a Reeves Library supervisor at Moravian University, said when she read the news she couldn’t stop smiling.

“Being the librarian I am, I researched her right away. Such a nomination is so historic, and even more so, it happened during Black History Month. Diversity in any setting is essential, and what better place to be nominated; the Supreme Court.

“I also hope that a Native American will one day be seated on the bench as well. America’s foundation began with the blood, sweat and bones of the indigenous [peoples], Europeans, and blacks of African descent. Even though history is filled with pain and horror, it cannot be rewritten. However, the nomination adds a new and powerful narrative for the next generation. “She personifies justice for all the injustices and degradation that our mothers encountered with the horrors of slavery.”

“I got chills up my spine each time I heard her voice or saw her picture,” said recent city council member Wandalyn Enix. “It is a very, very moving experience for me. I am thankful that I lived to see this day. Just think – for 233 years a black woman’s perspective on the Constitution has not been heard. I also remember when [President Lynden Johnson] nominated Thurgood Marshall, who was a remarkable civil rights advocate. I was in college in Washington, D.C. and I would occasionally spot him on our campus. He was one of my idols at that time.

“Ketanji too is an exceptional person. I believe that America is moving in the right direction when we embrace having more and more of our people represented at all levels of our governing systems. This will help us live out the true meaning of our creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men (and women) are created equal.’”