By Vincent L. Hall
What do you call a Black man with a Ph.D.? You call him a ‘nigger’.”
Malcolm Little/ Malcolm X/ el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz.
Ketanji Brown Jackson was duly-nominated, confirmed, and soon to be seated for the highest court in the land. Her place as America’s first and only Black woman on the United States Supreme Court is historical. It is even a small indication that some promises have been kept.
Like everyone, I am proud of Justice Brown Jackson and her ascent to the bench. However, most of us would be remiss if we did not acknowledge our angst in this bittersweet victory.
I will allow thousands of other columnists to bask in the after glow. But my mind is stuck in the dark moments of her hearings.
The hubris and brutal ironies of her foes were not unexpected. In this present political environment, there is much to be gained by bashing minorities, women, and immigrants. The Republican Party has been built on it bashing “the others” since they swapped places with the Democratic Party.
During this days-long charade, the Republicans called Justice Brown-Jackson everything short of the “N-Word.”
In a post-confirmation article, The Root pinned the tail on the elephant rather than the donkey.
“During her confirmation hearings, she endured attacks from Republicans over her judicial record, with several referencing her past sentencing decisions in cases that involved people convicted of child pornography offenses. Other judges across the ideological spectrum spoke in support of her judicial record.
Her confirmation hearings also became a venue for Republicans to score political points by bringing up topics such as critical race theory, which is currently not an issue in any case before the court.
But Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) also used the hearings to speak forcefully in support of Jackson and other Black women who have faced unfair treatment in their professional lives.”
President Lyndon Baines Johnson was generally right on the issues. But he underestimated the vileness, veracity, length, and breadth of America’s racism. After signing the 1964 Civil Rights Act, he declared, “We have lost the South for a generation.”
It has been three generations now, and another two or three are on the horizon.
The hallmarks of American history ensured that Justice Brown Jackson’s “perp walk” would be humiliating and inglorious. Texas Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn emerged early to let us know that they would lead the assault. That was another miscalculation LBJ made.
LBJ may not have fully realized that the South/North battle had spread like a cancer throughout the continental U.S. He didn’t account for how many Southern/Confederate sympathizers there were from Utah to Utica and from Arizona to the Alleghenies.
Two paragraphs from the bottom, though, contained one sentence that blew fresh oxygen on the simmering embers that singed my psyche throughout the “trial.”
“Finality of Jackson’s confirmation was delayed by several minutes, as 99 Senators had cast their votes, but Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), wasn’t on the Senate floor. He voted against confirmation. Republican Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and Mitt Romney (R-Utah) all voted in favor of confirmation.
Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), the only Black Senator, cast a “no” vote.”
The “Lone Negro” of the Senate Republican Caucus voted no. We are talking about a shuffling colored boy who holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Charleston Southern University. He was never an editor at the Harvard Law Review; he never received the Juris-Doctorate from the same or clerked for a justice on the court. Nevertheless, he saw the line the GOP wrote in the sand and knew not to cross it.
It was “Hell Week” for African Americans, liberal whites, and the whole cast of us who gawked at the Senate’s demeanor during this process. Malcolm X told us how far too many Whites devalue Black lives.
But you can always predict that one of the “good ones” will come to their aid and rescue.
I don’t know who leased, rented, or has a recorded deed on the Negro, “Shuffling Scott,” but it is apparent that he never disappoints his master(s). To channel the spirit of “Chicken George” in Alex Haley’s classic Roots, “Him’s is a good Nigga boss!”
What can you say about ol’ “Shuffling Scott?” Well, he’s quiet, and does what he’s told. Tim Scott is one of the “good ones.”
Vincent L. Hall is an author, activist, and an award-winning columnist.
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