Opinion Article by Community Member
By Charles Garner
Have you heard? Justice Breyer is retiring. Joe Biden made a campaign promise, “If I have the opportunity to appoint a nominee to the Supreme Court, it will be a black woman.”
Can we say discrimination? How about affirmative action? Or the prejudice of low expectations?
We are going backward, not forward. We are judging someone on the immutable and superficial characteristics of skin pigmentation and gender. Somebody go check Martin’s tomb to see if he’s rolling over in his grave.
Let’s do simple math—
(All population numbers used reflect 2020 populations.)
Population of the United States– 329.5 million
Population of Black or African American– 41.1 million
(12.55% of the total population)
Population of Asian or Asian Americans– 24 million
(7.2% of the total population).
Population of Hispanic/Latino– 62.1 million
(18.8% of the total population)
Number of justices on the Supreme Court—9
Percentile based on 100% that each justice represents—11.1%
Not to become too obvious, Justice Thomas (who was Black the last time I looked) represents 11.1% of the Supreme Court. Since the Black population of the United States is 12.55%, that leaves only 1.45% toward a second Black Justice on the Supreme Court.
Would it not be more equitable (nice word until it gets in the way of your politics), to appoint an Asian? Or even a second Hispanic/Latino to the Court.
C’mon, man. Get up with the population of the nation of which you are the President. You are acting like it is 1865. But if that is true…where’s the Native American?