Must President Obama Nominate a Black Woman For The Supreme Court?

By Barrington M. Salmon -Contributing Writer- | Last updated: Mar 17, 2016 - 5:51:45 PM

Analysts say the death of U.S. Suupreme Court Justice Antilito Scalia, (2nd from left, front) opened the door for President Barack Obama to nominate the first Black Woman. Photo: MGN Online

WASHINGTON—Since the death of influential conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in February, President Barack Obama, through his staff , has been vetting prospective replacements.

A steady stream of names has been judiciously leaked from the White House representing a variety of qualified men and women, but many in the Black legal and civil rights communities, elected officials and others are pressing Mr. Obama to nominate a Black woman to the highest court in the land.

On social media, in newspapers and in private conversations, Blacks have discussed where Black women are in the discussion for the U.S. Supreme Court vacancy, who’s in contention and what, if anything, President Obama owes his most loyal constituency.

“I think it’s absolutely seminal that an African- American woman is elevated to the Supreme Court,” said civil rights lawyer Barbara R. Arnwine. “An African-American woman deserves to be on the Supreme Court. There is no era like this one with this amazing, accomplished abundance of talented and well-regarded jurists. This is an era that demands a concerted effort for an African-American woman on the court.”

The power of the Supreme Court is manfested by it’s decision to legalize gay marriage. President Barack Obama addressed the nation on the decision in June of 2015.

“A Black woman would represent race, gender and intersectionality, bringing a whole different dialogue and new perspective. She would be able to speak about economics and issues affecting families in a comprehensive, efficient way.” Ms. Arnwine, who led the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law for more than 20 years, said it’s very important that the woman chosen is progressive.

“I’m not just talking about pigment. Not just any Black woman will do. We don’t need a Clarence Thomasina,” she said. “If the president wants to really Must President Obama nominate a Black woman for the Supreme Court? By Barrington M. Salmon Contributing Writer @bsalmondc cement his legacy, he needs to do this. He cannot allow this moment in history to pass.”

During his presidency, President Obama has chosen Justices Sonia Sotomayer and Elena Kagen to the high court. Justice Clarence Thomas is the only Black jurist on the court, chosen by President George H.W. Bush to replace legendary Justice Thurgood Marshall. A Black woman is yet to sit on the court.

Human rights lawyer Nicole Lee said what’s interesting to her is the number of names floated by the White House. But whoever is slated for nomination will likely become entangled in the web of hyper-partisanship political wrangling initiated by Senate Republicans and their leadership.

Atty. Lee, former president of the human rights organization Trans Africa, said everyone will have to wait to see how this judicial process shakes out.

“No matter who the president chooses, Republicans, have confirmed that no matter what, they, for the most part, have locked ranks,” she said. “It’s interesting to see how long they can hold that with all the explosive stuff going on in the primaries.”

“As someone looking at the totality of the system, I have a politically pragmatic approach. I would like to see a moderate progressive get in over any phenotype. There are no indications that the GOP will go for it. A White, male pick is more typical of their speed, but there’s no indication that such a person would even get a shake.”

“We do talk about it,” Atty. Lee said of her friends and colleagues. “No one is saying hold over the nomination. Everyone is saying do it now. No one is waiting on Hillary Clinton. This is all we have. The buzz is who we’re going to get and when we’re gonna get them.”

Like Ms. Arnwine, Ms. Lee anticipates significant movement and real change if a moderate progressive makes it onto the court. Conservatives have dominated the court since the 1970s which has been injurious to the nation’s ability to deal with racial issues, Ms. Arnwine said.

“We’re talking about civil liberties being taken away. There’s an opportunity to radically shift the court at a time we need to have criminal justice reforms,” said Ms. Lee. “Progressive judges on the court could really open opportunities to move criminal justice forward.”

Just hours after news of Justice Scalia’s death, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced that Senate Republicans would not even consider a nominee sent over from the White House. He continues to argue that the next president should choose Justice Scalia’s successor.

Senate Democrats and other critics have castigated Sen. McConnell and other Republicans who’ve mouthed the same sentiments so far to no avail.

Retired Supreme Court Justice and Ronald Reagan nominee Sandra Day O’Connor said that even though it’s unusual for a Supreme Court vacancy to appear during an election year, Mr. Obama should name Justice Scalia’s replacement as a part of his constitutional duty.

“We need somebody in there to do the job and just get on with it,” she said in published reports. “I think we need somebody there now to do the job and get on with it. You just have to pick the best person you can under these circumstances, as the appointing authority must do. It’s an important position and one we care about as a nation, as a people. And I wish the president well as he makes choices and goes down that line. It’s hard.”

A number of Democratic Senators and members of the Congressional Black Caucus, led by Chairman Rep. G. K. Butterfield, held a March 3 press conference on Capitol Hill to blast Senate Republicans for their failure to “advise and consent.”

“Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is reinforcing the Republican political agenda to disrupt governmental functions when the circumstances do not line up with their philosophy,” said Chairman Butterfield in a statement. “It is imperative that we have nine members of the United States Supreme Court deciding constitutional issues that are important to the American people. It is absurd to suggest that President Obama should be denied the opportunity to nominate a qualified jurist to replace Justice Scalia on the Supreme Court. The American people should clearly understand that Senate Republicans have a political agenda to pack the court with conservative justices who would reverse years of progressive jurisprudence.”

“The Congressional Black Caucus urges President Obama to expeditiously nominate a replacement for Justice Scalia who has the scholarship, values and temperament to sit on the highest court of our country and decide cases based on established law rather than a political agenda. We will vigorously confront Senate Republicans at every turn should they dismiss President Obama’s nomination.”

The Rev. Derrick Harkins, former director of Faith Outreach for the Democratic Party and advisor to President Obama, agrees with the sentiment that a Black woman be chosen to the Supreme Court.

“A Black woman to me would be absolutely critical. President Obama has to be thinking about that critically,” said Rev. Harkins, senior vice president for Innovations in Public Programming at Union Theological Seminary in New York. “What we’re finding in this whole episode is disrespect for the office of the presidency. This is his constitutional right and obligation. It shows the irrationality of racially based politics. They sound like a three-year-old having a temper tantrum. It bothers me that they have such disregard for the president.”

“It’s less than a year left in his presidency and this is the last opportunity his opponents have to try to delegitimize this president.”

From the perspective of the type and level of support Black women have given to President Obama in the past, Avis Jones- DeWeever thinks it’s a nonbrainer for Mr. Obama to choose a Black woman.

“Absolutely. It’s essential to pick a Black woman to the Supreme Court. Black woman are Obama’s biggest demographic in the last two election cycles. It makes sense,” said Dr. DeWeever, a Career Reinvention Strategist, international speaker and political commentator. “There’s a plethora of qualified Black women available. We’ve never had a Black woman. We need a real Black person on the Supreme Court.”

“It’s insulting to think that only one Black person had been appointed to the court. There’s only been two Black men on the court. It’s well past due for a woman.”

Against the backdrop of the presidential elections in November, Dr. DeWeever said picking a woman would energize Democratic supporters.

“There’s not as much enthusiasm on the Democrat side and this election may be closer than we think or want. If you want to energize your most loyal base, pick a Black woman. You will see new levels of passion to come out and punish those seeking to disrespect Black women,” said Dr. DeWeever, president of Incite Unlimited, a Washington, D. C.-based boutique consulting firm specializing in diversity consulting, communications strategy and the development of impactful research. “You have all these old White men saying they won’t even consider an Obama nomination. I’d love to see Loretta Lynch get nominated. They’d have to ‘whitesplain’ why they wouldn’t consider her after they already voted her in as attorney general.”

Dr. DeWeever said President Obama has heard from Black organizations who’ve reached out to him.

“But I’m not sure if Obama has a staff who get Black people,” she said. “A lot of his key staff aren’t familiar with us. If he wants to protect his legacy, he needs to be very strategic about this decision.”

Atty. Arnwine, convener of the Civil Rights Coalition on Police Reform, said a plethora of Black individuals and organizations have been reaching out to President Obama.

“We’re urging the president to nominate an African-American woman; urging him to do it soon and not delay it; and we’re also urging Congress and the Senate to open up their minds and stop playing political football with this nomination.”

“There are all kinds of social media and letter writing campaigns and meeting with senators. They need to come off the ledge. There are reallife consequences, alarming consequences for not having a full court. There’s an urgency and necessity to have a fully staff ed court or it will not be functional. It’s operational with eight members but it’s dysfunctional. I hope President Obama’s conclusion is the inevitability of putting an African-American woman on the Supreme Court.”

The Final Call