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Today, October 26, 2015, CBC Chairman G. K. Butterfield (NC-01) participated in a discussion hosted by the Center for American Progress (CAP) to highlight the need for diversity in federal judicial appointments.

Remarks by CBC Chairman Butterfield, as prepared for delivery, follow:

Discussion on Judicial Elections, Judges of Color, and Diversity on the Bench

Hosted by the Center for American Progress (CAP)

Greetings on behalf of the Congressional Black Caucus.  Our priorities are your priorities and should be the priority of the Congress and the Nation:  restoring Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, reducing the wage gap, criminal justice reform, protecting the social safety net, producing a long-term transportation bill, and responsibly reducing the deficit, etc.

Diversity in the judiciary.  The importance of the judiciary cannot be understated.  It is the role of the judiciary to defend and uphold the United States Constitution and assure the rule of law prevails.  The role of the judiciary is to deliver justice and to do it evenly and fairly.

Currently, the median income of African American households is $34,600—nearly $24,000 less than the median income of white households ($58,300) and the median net worth of white households is 13 times the level of that of black households.  African Americans are almost three times more likely to live in poverty than white Americans and African Americans currently face an unemployment rate that is higher than the national unemployment rate EVER reached during the recent recession. 

These statistics clearly demonstrate the frustration and hopelessness in most communities of color.  The mindset of having no voice undoubtedly sets an internalization of the social constructs which serve as barriers to achieving a version of the American Dream. 

The theme of this year’s Annual Legislative Conference (ALC) was “With Liberty and Justice for All?”  The theme touched on so many areas in the lives of those in the African American community and lets us know that there is still so much work to do. 

There are also barriers in the judiciary.  Access to justice is being denied every day in courtrooms across America.  These barriers must be eliminated:  excessive arrests and excessive charging, drug offenses clogging the system, ineffective counsel, crowded dockets, jury pool and jury selection, judges with extreme political views that impact judicial discretion, unnecessary active sentences, inadequate probations departments, mass incarceration, and expungement.

Communities across America must have judges presiding over cases that reflect the diverse makeup of their communities.  Judges must come from the real world and understand the racial and cultural differences that make our country so great.  Put a different way – judicial diversity promotes impartiality by ensuring that no single viewpoint or perspective or set of values can persistently dominate legal decision making.  

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg has commented that a “system of justice is the richer for the diversity of background and experience of its participants.” 

Justice Lewis Powell stated “a member of a previously excluded group can bring insights to the Court that the rest of its members lack.”

Legal scholar Sherrilyn Ifill asserts “racial diversity among judges is a critical means of achieving cultural pluralism in judicial decision-making.” 

Finally, it is true that elected judiciaries are generally less diverse than their appointed federal counterparts, thus one can assert there is a lack of a variety of experiences informing the deliberative process. 

As many of you may know, I served on the North Carolina Supreme Court and was defeated in a partisan election in 2002.  We must continue the debate about the most effective method of judicial selection.  We must continue to explain why dirty money in judicial elections are damaging to the independence of the judiciary.

Thank you for allowing me to share with you these viewpoints as we talk about judicial reform. 

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Since its establishment in 1971, Members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) have joined together to empower America’s neglected citizens and address their legislative concerns. For more than 40 years, the CBC has consistently been the voice for people of color and vulnerable communities in Congress and has been committed to utilizing the full Constitutional power and statutory authority of the United States government to ensure that all U.S. citizens have an opportunity to achieve the American Dream. To learn more about the Congressional Black Caucus, visit http://cbc-butterfield.house.gov.

Media inquiries: Candace Randle Person at (202) 593-1331 or Candace.Randle@mail.house.gov