One of modern America’s most inspirational figures shared advice and stories from her past on Oct. 23, when Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Ketanji Brown Jackson brought her wit and wisdom to the CSUDH Presidential Lecture Series.
Titled “Lessons From My Life in the Law,” it was the final lecture in the series to be hosted by outgoing President Thomas A. Parham, who introduced Justice Jackson. Bringing the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States to the stage to close out his tenure was “a privilege and an honor,” he said.
“Our guest is the smile from the ancestors for the progress she represents,” he continued. “(She) is an affirming nod to the contemporary generations of elders and adults who thank her for representing the full measure of her cultural essence and integrity, with an uncompromising clarity and an aspirational feeling of hope and enlightenment from the younger generations of those yet to be born, who will see in her a symbol of possibility and potential for themselves.”
When she took the stage, Justice Jackson called engaging with college students “one of my greatest joys as a Supreme Court Justice.” She went on to share three lessons from her life, which she summed up as “Work hard, be kind, and proceed with boldness.”
Delving deeper into these lessons, Justice Jackson advised students, “Plan to work hard at anything you decide to do. If there is a key takeaway from my own success story, it is that with diligence, ordinary humans can do extraordinary things. I strongly believe the only real difference between the ordinary and the extraordinary is hard work.”
“Never underestimate the power of kindness,” she continued. “Doing well in life is inextricably linked with whether other people think highly of you… Successful people need other people to support them, and much of that support is earned over time by how you treat others, both professionally and personally.”
“Being kind means being aware of your impact on others and striving each day to make your impact a positive one, even in small moments. In the long run, kindness builds trust and opens doors in ways that academic achievement and skills cannot.”
The justice’s third lesson was, “Summon the courage to face the future with unwavering confidence.” She underlined that point with a favorite saying of her father-in-law: “Do the right thing and everything else figures itself out.”
After her speech, the justice sat down with President Parham for a “fireside chat.” Their wide-ranging discussion touched on everything from states’ rights to the way her family’s history impacted and influenced her life and career.
The justice shared that her grandfather had started his own gardening business in Miami when he tired of the treatment he received at other jobs. He earned enough to put all five of his children through college. As Justice Jackson put it, “he knew that education was the opportunity our family needed to get to the next stage, to do more than we had been allowed to do in the past.”
The chat was followed by a panel discussion moderated by CSUDH Vice President & Campus Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer Bobbie Porter. The justice was joined on the panel by Mary Lacanlale, Chair and Associate Professor of Asian Pacific Studies, Salim Faraji, Chair and Professor of Africana Studies, and Joanna Perez, Associate Professor of Sociology.
The discussion touched on a range of topics. When asked how she maintained her sense of self in spaces not designed for her, Justice Jackson said, “I just come as I am and do the things I want to do.”
A question about the arts drew a passionate response from the justice, who shared that her mother served as the principal at a high school for the arts. “The arts are everything to me!” she exclaimed.
While declining to get drawn into discussions of specific political issues or strategies, the justice did share her hopes for what those in attendance can do going forward.
“I hope you all will stay engaged… I think it’s going to take us all to really focus on what is going on and continue to invest in this country, our communities, our families, and ourselves, in order to ensure that we can continue to maintain a free and fair democracy.”
