'It's time': Black women rally for Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson in Washington

WASHINGTON – As Ketanji Brown Jackson met with senators on Capitol Hill Thursday, steps away hundreds of Black women called for support for the nominee in front of the U.S. Supreme Court where they hope she will be seated.

"We're here to stand in solidarity,'' said Melanie Campbell, president of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation. "We're here to put a warning out that we want Judge Jackson to have a fair confirmation process."

Hundreds of Black women from organizations across the country converged on Capitol Hill to press lawmakers to support Jackson, President Joe Biden’s nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, and to back sweeping voting rights legislation stalled in the Senate.

Many participants at the "Speak Out'' were attending a five-day summit hosted by the Black Women’s Roundtable, a national coalition of grassroots groups. The conference also included panels on voting rights, health concerns, including the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on Black communities, and other social justice issues.

The organization, along with Essence, a national magazine for Black women, released a poll Thursday highlighting political concerns of African American women.

The survey of more than 600 Black women found that their top three concerns for the midterms are improving the economy, combating discrimination and systemic racism and protecting voting rights.

Roughly 74% said they would definitely vote in the election. About 68% of Generation Z and Millennial Black women said they would definitely vote.

Sydney Powell, a 19-year-old political science major at Western Michigan University, said she's motivated to vote.

“There's been so many people before us that have worked so hard to give us this opportunity, so why not take advantage of it,” said Powell. “I think when we do come together, we are a very strong force.”

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Advocates push for Jackson confirmation

Jackson, a federal appeals court judge and former federal public defender, has spent recent weeks meeting with Democratic and Republican senators. Her confirmation hearings are scheduled to begin March 21. If confirmed, Jackson would be the first Black woman to serve on the nation’s highest court.

Organizations led by Black women pressed Biden to follow through on his 2020 campaign promise to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court if the position opened up. Justice Stephen Breyer announced his plans to retire earlier this year.

More: Supreme Court confirmation: How the process for Ketanji Brown Jackson will unfold in the Senate

Cheryl Norgrove-Gooding, 61, joined her Zeta Phi Beta sorority sisters at the rally to support Jackson.

“So often in the fight for equality, Black women get overlooked,’’ said Norgrove-Gooding, a retired high school math teacher in Washington, D.C.

Norgrove-Gooding noted that the Senate voted three times to confirm Jackson, but still she's bracing for a battle over her nomination.

“They felt she was worthy, so now it's time for her to sit on the high court,’’ she said.

Gooding said it's important that supporters return, particularly during the confirmation hearings. “It matters that we show up, but we’ve got to keep showing up.”

Brijah Oneal, a 22-year-old majoring in social worker at Western Michigan University, said she was empowered by Jackson’s nomination.

“Our voices need to be heard and that's why we're out here right now,” she said.

Former Alabama Sen. Doug Jones, who has escorted Jackson to meetings with senators, said Jackson welcomes the support.

"It helps her to have it and helps her confidence,’’ Jones, who is guiding Jackson through the nomination process, told reporters in the U.S. Capitol. “Obviously, she recognizes that this is the pinnacle of a lawyer's career that she's being asked to do and it means a lot to have the support over there."

"Ultimately, every senator is going to have to make their own decision based on her record,’’ he said.

More: Black women face obstacles to public office despite Biden's Supreme Court nomination vow

'Georgia is the epicenter'

By mid-afternoon, Jackson had met with at least three senators, including Sen. Jon Ossoff, a Democrat from Georgia.

Kimberly Scott, executive director of Georgia WAND, an environmental social justice nonprofit, was part of a Georgia delegation that met with Ossoff and Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga. The group discussed Jackson’s nomination along with canceling student loan debt, environmental issues, labor, transportation and housing.

Deborah Scott, executive director of Georgia STAND-UP, a nonpartisan civic engagement group, said it was important to talk with the Georgia lawmakers about voting rights.

“Georgia is in the epicenter of the world right now because we were that key battleground state that actually flipped this country,” said Scott. “We know that anytime that there are actions, there are reactions to what we do.”

Georgia will be the focus of attention again this year as voters decided on a Senate election and some competitive midterms.

Scott pointed to restrictive election legislation that Republican Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law in 2021.

“We know that they're testing out some of those policies there,” she said.

'Every vote counts'

Organizers came from all over the country, some as far away as Michigan. They represented faith groups, labor organizations and sororities.

They chanted, “Who do we want for Supreme Court justice?”

“Ketanji Brown Jackson! ‘’ the crowd replied.

Others held up signs that read, “Confirm Judge Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court,” and “Good Trouble, Economic Justice, Protect Voting Rights.’’

Sheila Tyson, a Jefferson County commissioner in Alabama, brought 30 high school students from Birmingham. She’s worried about states, including her own, adopting more restrictive election laws. She pointed to, among other things, election officials, moving ballots boxes from some rural counties.

“They’re putting every tactic in place,’’ she said. “Only thing they ain’t doing is lynching us from trees and shooting us with hoses. ‘’

Organizations run by Black women have led get-out-the-vote efforts across the country and have been credited with helping turn out record numbers of Black voters in some battleground states during the 2020 presidential election. Black voters were also key voting blocs in Georgia, where they helped Democrats win two U.S. Senate seats.

Organizers said it was important to include young people, who could be key voting blocs, in the rallies and the summit.

Tamara Macey, a senior at Parkway Center City Middle College in Philadelphia, turned 18 years old earlier this month and hasn’t yet voted. During the 2020 election, she helped pass out voter information. She said it was important to attend the summit to fight for equal rights and for the confirmation of Jackson.

“I feel like it really matters,’’ she said. “Everyone matters, every vote counts.”

Follow Deborah Berry on Twitter: @dberrygannett and Mabinty Quarshie: @MabintyQ

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Black women rally at the Supreme Court and Capitol for voting rights