On April 7, 2022, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was officially confirmed by the Senate to the Supreme Court. Confirmed with a majority vote (53-47) , Justice Brown Jackson is the first black woman to ever become a Supreme Court Justice. 

AP Government and Politics teacher Mrs. Brooke Oels, drops some knowledge on Justice Jackson’s status post-confirmation. 

“Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson won’t officially be sworn in until after this term is over, so she won’t have an impact on this term. (She has to wait until Justice Stephen Breyer officially retires; once he does that, she’ll be sworn in. But for now, he’ll be deciding the cases with the other Justices. This is normal – she was confirmed in the middle of the term and is replacing someone who is retiring – so he’ll finish out this term and she’ll start in October when the new term starts,)” said Oels. 

Judge Jackson’s appointment is filling Americans with high hopes. She is currently the most experienced justice to date.  She clerked under Supreme Court Justice [retiree Justice Breyer], served as a public defender, worked on the U.S Sentencing commission and served as district judge. [ According to The Washington Post ].   

SPFHS junior Leila Simeon is excited for the future with Justice Jackson as well. 

“In my opinion, I feel more represented and I hope that we see more progress in the future. I think it’s important for public servants to represent the American public, which means more diversity all around,” Simeon said.