There have been far too few national moments where Black women have been at the center of public celebration. February 2022, the month designated in the United States of America as Black History Month, will now be celebrated as Black Future Month as well, thanks to President Joe Biden and Vice President, Kamala D. Harris.
Honoring his campaign commitment to name a Black woman for the first time in the 233-year history of the Supreme Court should be written down in history as one of the greatest historical moments in our lifetime as Americans.
The Supreme Court, the highest Court in our nation, has never had the voice and brilliance of a Black woman on the court. “There is no need for America’s highest court to be off limits to a Black woman anymore,” said Donna Brazile, political strategist.
This moment is the harvest of our ancestors, who believed in a future they could not see. The time is right for this incredible moment.
Every Black woman whose name has circulated across the media since the pending nomination was made public, is a woman of impeccable credentials and worthy of this sincere consideration. Every Black woman highlighted, talked about, and hailed as the potential candidate, deserves this public celebration of her individual accomplishments, stellar body of work and legal scholarship.
The bench of nominees is deep and is intentionally getting deeper according to Dean Danielle M. Conway, dean, and Donald J. Farage, professor of law, at Penn State Dickinson Law.
Black women have been preparing for this moment for decades. We have not given up the fight for justice, freedom, and equal rights. The future is brighter for young girls everywhere, as this nomination affirms their ambition, and validates their arduous work.
I can only smile from a deep place when I imagine what my mentors, the late Dr. Dorothy I. Height, national African American civil rights activist, and Mother Ida B. Kinney, leader of seniors in the San Fernando Valley of Southern California, would say about this moment. These women would ask that we not miss the opportunity to express our Joy as we celebrate this victory and movement forward in this country.
Dr. Height especially would say “thank you” to the women who have spent years striving for excellence that is required of us in all that we do to advance. She would say “thank you” to the Black families who practice unity and self-determination – one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa – in helping to prepare these women for this very moment.
Finally, I believe both Dr. Height and Mother Kinney, would be among the organizers of some grand recognition of the occasion for the world to stop and learn not just about the one deserving woman whose name will be put forth as the nominee of President Biden, but, to also learn about the entire class of women being considered thus ensuring that their exceptional talents would remain in our memory forever.
Barbara A. Perkins is an executive leadership coach and multi-faceted businesswoman with 30+ years in the private and public sector. She is president of the International Black Women’s Public Policy Institute and president of Image Builders Etcetera, LLC, a full-service leadership development and coaching firm.
