National Racial Justice Organization Condemns Confirmation of Neil Gorsuch to the United States Supreme Court
WASHINGTON – Today, the United States Senate confirmed Neil Gorsuch as a Supreme Court Justice after voting to change Senate rules allowing for the confirmation of Supreme Court nominees with a simple majority vote. Judith Browne Dianis, executive director of Advancement Project’s national office, issued the following response.
“Neil Gorsuch has shown through his record as a federal judge that he disfavors ‘equal protection of all under the law.’ His willingness to make it harder for people to bring civil rights litigation and to vote by his support for strict voter-ID laws make him a direct threat to communities of color. As a Supreme Court Justice, Gorsuch’s confirmation will diminish the federal court’s role as a catalyst for civil rights and tremendously harm voting rights and educational opportunities for students of color and those with disabilities.”
Time and again, he has ignored evidence of racial discrimination in our justice system and court efforts to regulate and grant relief for those sentenced to capital punishment. Gorsuch’s judicial philosophy has shown more concern for law enforcement than inequalities faced by Black and Brown people. As a judge who has proudly placed himself in the mold of the late Justice Scalia, we can expect that on the nation’s highest court, unfortunately, he will be a decisive factor in reviewing cases in which states have created additional barriers to the ballot box that silence the voice of communities of color, and block efforts to hold police officers accountable.”
We call on all supporters of democracy, voting rights and the rights of marginalized communities to remain vigilant as we continue to fight for justice in the face of institutions that threaten our country’s promise of a just democracy. We will not be silent.”
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Advancement Project is a multi-racial civil rights organization. Founded by a team of veteran civil rights lawyers in 1999, Advancement Project was created to develop and inspire community-based solutions based on the same high quality legal analysis and public education campaigns that produced the landmark civil rights victories of earlier
