Chair Mitchell’s Statement on Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Becoming the First Black Woman Confirmed to the United States Supreme Court

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Today the Senate confirmed President Joe Biden’s Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson. Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Chair, Holly J. Mitchell, provided the following statement on the historic confirmation of Judge Jackson as the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court:

“This moment is long overdue. The confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is a testament to the continued need to dismantle systemic barriers that cause for historic firsts like this to be two centuries in the making. Not only will Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson be the first the Black woman to serve on the highest court in the nation – Judge Jackson will also be the first judge to have served as a Federal Public Defender. Her extensive judicial experience grappling with the inequities of our criminal justice system and lived truth as the daughter of public servants is needed on the bench. I am proud of the critical step forward our country has taken today in making the Supreme Court more reflective of the diversity of the United States, our work here is far from done. When I see Judge Jackson, I see a dream of my ancestors realized. Today she becomes the first, but she will not be the last.”