‘This is who we could be’: BIPOC law student takes heart during Ketanji Brown Jackson hearing – WCCO

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A candidate making history could help change the face of the US Supreme Court. Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson will begin considering questions during her confirmation hearing on Tuesday. She was the first black woman to be nominated to the nation’s highest court.

WCCO spoke with members of our local legal community about the implications of her choice.

READ MORE: Hopkins HS students push legislature for free pads, tampons in Minnesota schools

A law school student and a law school professor and both consider the confirmation hearing for Jackson a historic and necessary moment in our national history, and a proud moment for those black and brown law women.

Anisha Murphy said: “It gives young black girls like myself and others going to be grooms a chance to look up and say, ‘Look, this is what we can be and this is who we are. we can become’.

An attorney and law professor at Hamline University, Murphy was not surprised by some of the questions presented to Jackson that she believes were designed to cast doubt on her nomination.

“I think confirmation hearings are doing exactly what they are designed to do. I think she’s answering questions with a lot of grace,” said Murphy.

READ MORE: Measure MN GOP proposes Paid Leave Through Private Insurance, Small Business Tax Credit

“When I look at her LSAT scores, I think it’s a bit ridiculous, because I believe that for other judges, there has never been such an argument,” said Tobi Ladipo, a freshman at the school. St. Law School. Thomas said.

Watching the hearings between classes, Ladipo was encouraged by what she saw.

“You know, seeing someone with dark skin, looking like an average black woman with a scary look, is really inspiring to know that you can be yourself to the fullest. about your looks and still be considered for these positions,” said Ladipo.

Her personal story is one that these women consider difficult to demonize. Although she graduated from Harvard dual college, her parents attended separate schools and became teachers at the school after graduating from Historically Black College and University – humble beginnings that helped raised a woman of achievement who could serve the rest of her life for the Supreme Court of the United States.

“Please continue to support her, to keep her in our prayers as she continues through this time, and overcome this obstacle and become our next Supreme Court Justice. me,” Murphy said.

MORE NEWS: Congress split over how the US should help Ukraine

Many believe that Jackson’s overwhelming evidence and dedication to the rule of law make her fit to serve as the nation’s 116th Deputy Attorney General. The hope is that she will inspire more Blacks and Browns to work to be on the bench and represented at every level of the law.