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When Issa Rae was famously quoted during the 2017 Emmy Awards as saying, “I’m rooting for everybody Black,” melanated folks from all walks of life could literally relate to her declaration of cultural support for one another. Unfortunately, not all skin-folk agree with the notion of “betting on Black.”

An African American retired federal judge from Alabama, first in the state’s history to be exact, made it his mission to speak out in protest of the potential nomination of Black female Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to occupy Justice Stephen Breyer’s soon-to-be-vacant seat on the Supreme Court.

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U.W. Clemon has reportedly written a letter to President Joe Biden, who’s vowing to fill the SCOTUS role with a Black woman specifically, to not give consideration to frontrunner Brown-Jackson. In the Feb 4 note, obtained by NBC News, Clemon explicitly states that Ketanji isn’t one of the “several exceptionally well-qualified black female aspirants” worthy of being in the position.

Read below for some insight into why he’s so against the political advancement of Ketanji Brown Jackson, via NBC News:

“He pointed to one case she presided over, Ross v. Lockheed, a 2016 class-action suit on behalf of 5,500 Black workers of Lockheed Martin. At the time, she declined to approve a settlement that was reached which could have provided $22 million and reforms related to the promotion process at Lockheed.

‘She refused to approve the settlement because in her view there were no common factual questions,’ Clemon wrote.

Clemon, who retired from the court in 2009, is listed as a counsel at the firm Mehri & Skalet, which argued on the losing side of the Ross v. Lockheed case. Other rulings by Jackson have drawn praise from progressives as labor-friendly.”

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The White House fired back with praise for Brown-Jackson, referring to her as “deeply qualified” with “an extraordinary record through hard work and a life of service — from serving as a public defender to a judge.” Deputy press secretary Andrew Bate even went on record to say “It’s because of Judge Jackson’s experience in roles at all levels of the justice system, her character, and her legal brilliance that President Biden nominated her to the D.C. Circuit Court, after which she earned her third Senate confirmation, and he’s very proud of that decision.”

Biden is said to have narrowed down his shortlist to “about four people,” which many are assuming are Black women exclusively including Ketanji Brown Jackson, Judge J. Michelle Childs and California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Kruger. The decision will reportedly be announced by the end of the month.

Is U.W. Clemon in the wrong for throwing shade towards the political rise of Ketanji Brown Jackson or is he actually looking out for the people? Let us know your thoughts on this SCOTUS situation.

 

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