I Give You Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson

By Sheretta T. Butler-Barnes, Ph.D., and Leoandra Onnie Rogers, Ph.D.

On April 7, 2022, the Senate confirmed Justice Ketanji Onyika Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court, elevating Jackson as the first Black woman in history to the position. A Black woman on the nation’s highest court is historic. But does this monumental event matter for young Black girls today? As developmental scientists whose scholarship focuses on the lived experiences of Black girls in the United States, we assert that it matters immensely. Here’s why.

Ketanji Brown Jackson delivers opening remarks at her confirmation hearing.

Source: C-SPAN/Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain

Girlhood—from kindergarten through the middle school years—is a pivotal stage of development for Black girls. It is a time when formative beliefs about the self and one’s value and position in society are laid, and the pathways for future goals and possibilities are set in place. In this society, Black girls are often confronted with demeaning racial and gender stereotypes and hypersexualized tropes that communicate negative messages about who they are and how they are valued.

The appointment of Justice Jackson is an explicit counternarrative to society’s prevailing narrative of Black girls. In Swahili, the meaning of Kentanji Onyika is “lovely one.” Yet Jackson’s loveliness is neither unique nor singular; it is not about her sole exceptionalism but rather a signal—a reminder—of the collective loveliness and inherent value of all Black girls, which profoundly shapes our understandings of and possibilities for Black girlhood.

Shining a light on Black girlhood

Among academic scholars, Black girlhood is more than a topic or idea; it is a radical call to make visible that which and those who have been rendered invisible by systems of oppression, racial and sexual violence, and exploitation (Wright, 2016). Black girlhood centers on the lived experiences of Black girls to highlight their resistance and refusal of oppression—the ways Black girls and women reclaim their time and space and creatively make meaning of their lives.

Source: Public Domain Photo | Credit: Piqsels

An example of the ways Black women create such spaces for visibility is the hashtag #BlackGirlMagic, coined by Cashawn Thompson in 2017. #BlackGirlMagic signifies Black girls' strength, resilience, sense of community, perseverance, and a collective sisterhood; it is a space for Black girls to be seen on their own terms. Justice Brown Jackson exemplifies Black Girl Magic, and we watched her claim her space, her identity, during the confirmation hearing. The questions posed by some U.S. Senators focused on issues that were not in her purview as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, topics that rarely, if ever, appeared before her in the courtroom (e.g., critical race theory). In response, Justice Brown Jackson repeatedly reiterated that she was there to answer questions about the law and about her qualifications as a judge.

This resonates with Sojourner's Truth's famous speech, “Ain't I a Woman.” At the 1851 Women's Rights Convention in Ohio, Sojourner made visible her lived experience as a Black woman, saying, “Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best place! And ain't I a woman?” In a similar way, Justice Brown Jackson demanded that her lived experiences and accomplishments be seen, heard, and valued.

This persistent threat of invisibility is all too common for Black girls in classrooms throughout the U.S. Black girls report racial and gender discrimination in school, being perceived by their teachers as less intelligent, rowdy, disrespectful, and hypersexual, which is correlated with greater reports of mental health problems among Black girls (Butler-Barnes et al., in press; Carter et al., 2019). Yet, feelings of racial pride and a sense of belongingness counter these toxic experiences, serving as protective factors for Black girls (Butler-Barnes et al., 2017). We watched a parallel process unfold as Justice Brown Jackson was reminded of her resilience, perseverance, and, most importantly, her worth.

During the confirmation hearing, there was an exchange between Senator Booker and Justice Brown Jackson, in which she shared a story about her experience at Harvard University, where she felt she did not belong. She spoke about how a Black woman (whom she did not know) walked past her and encouraged her to persevere. This is the magic of Black girlhood: to stand, speak, and be seen and heard together. Justice Brown Jackson's truth-telling and sharing of her lived experiences as a daughter, mother, and wife means something. We watched her push through the nomination hearing, feet on the pavement, committed to standing for truth and justice. In a society where Black girls face marginalization and invisibility, it is our collective resistance, our storytelling, and affirmation that remind us of who we really are.

Source: Christopher Boyd/Pexels

The nomination and confirmation of Justice Brown Jackson shed a bright light on the beauty, complexity, and possibility of Black girlhood. This is a moment for Black girls, for Black girlhood. A moment for Black girls to know that they too are enough—an opportunity for society to see the value and worth of Black girls. Justice Ketanji Onyika Brown Jackson dreamed from the tender space of Black girlhood and is now positioned to create spaces for other Black girls to (continue to) dream—and achieve.

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This is a guest blog post written by Dr. Sheretta Butler-Barnes, an associate professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis. Dr. Butler-Barnes is a developmental psychologist whose expertise includes gender-specific racial identity development and academic experiences, risk and resilience, and mental health outcomes among Black youth.