Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) delivered an emotional speech on day three of the confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Kentanji Brown Jackson on Wednesday.
Judge Jackson was moved to tears during Booker’s 20-minute allotted time to question her on the final day of the Senate Judiciary hearing. After a series of controversial and racist questioning from his GOP colleagues, Booker praised Jackson for becoming the first Black woman nominated to the nation’s highest court and the notable accomplishments she achieved, ABC News reported.
“You got here how every Black woman in America who’s gotten anywhere has done, by being like Ginger Rogers: ‘I did everything Fred Astaire did but backward, in heels,’” Booker said.
During the hearing, Jackson faced many questions from Republicans regarding her sentencing record on child pornography cases and her association with a private school in Washington D.C. that Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) accused of teaching “critical race theory.”
In addition, South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham engaged in a heated exchange with Jackson, implying that she was nominated due to “dark money” from far-left advocacy groups.
Booker, during his time, shielded and lifted Jackson with a rousing speech that included joy, our ancestors, pride and having her back.
“It’s hard for me not to look at you and not see my mom, not to see my cousins — one of them who had to come here and sit behind you,” Booker said. “She had to have your back. I see my ancestors and yours.”
“Nobody’s gonna steal that joy,” Booker said in his speech. “Nobody’s taking this away from me.”
The New Jersey senator went on to tell a story about a Black woman he encountered while out for a run earlier in the day. He said the woman shared her excitement with him as she witnessed Jackson on the path to becoming the first Black woman Supreme Court justice, per The Grio.
“The look in her eyes…she just wanted to touch me, I think because I’m sitting so close to you and tell me what it meant to her to watch you sitting where you’re sitting,” Booker shared. “You did not get there because of some left-wing agenda. You didn’t get here because of some dark money groups. You got here how every Black woman in America who’s gotten anywhere.”
A tearful Jackson reached for a tissue to wipe her eyes as Booker continued the emotional exchange with the Supreme Court nominee.
Senator Booker, the only Black senator in the upper chamber, shared another story about the time he was elected to the U.S. Senate. He said a Black man working in the Capitol Building approached him and said, “I’m so happy you’re here.”
“He comes up [and] he can’t get the words out, and this man, my elder, starts crying. And I just hugged him, and he just kept telling me, it’s so good to see you here,” Booker recalled.
Senator Booker turned to Jackson and continued: “This country is getting better and better and better. When that final vote happens, and you are sent on to the highest court in the land– I’m going to rejoice.”
“The greatest country in the world, the United States of America, will be better because of you.”
Watch Cory Booker’s full speech below.
Many viewers praised Booker for his uplifting words toward Jackson, including Tracey Michae’l Lewis-Giggetts, the author of “Black Joy: Stories of Resistance, Resilience, and Restoration.”
“Watching Booker express Black joy, in that space, felt like an affirmation for all the times we’ve all had to laugh or dance or cry out in exaltation in the face of racism and white supremacist systems,” Lewis-Giggetts told ABC News. “Even in the midst of clear racism and racist dog whistles, Booker could look into the face of Judge Brown-Jackson, see the long line of Black people who came before her, and rejoice with her.”
Booker’s speech also garnered praise on social media.
Democratic Senator Cory Booker invokes Harriet Tubman, Constance Baker Motley and Langston Hughes in a passionate speech in defense of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson: Nobody’s going to steal our joy! pic.twitter.com/biyjMVIwDd
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) March 23, 2022
Y’all I finally watched @CoryBooker strategically take up space during his speech so our Black sister could rest. Today I am so grateful to the many Black men who have protected and held space for me. Who let me unravel and just be and stood firm in their love for me.
— Tiffany N. Younger (@TiffanyYounger4) March 24, 2022
US Senator, Cory Booker, used Beyoncé during his speech at #KetanjiBrownJackson hearing.
“We can yell as much as we want that Venus can’t serve, we can yell.. that Beyoncé can’t sing, but none of those arguments stick…. They have nothing to prove, the work speaks for itself” pic.twitter.com/3Q8OM8kok2
— Hermiden (@IChoseViolencee) March 24, 2022
Thank you Senator Booker, you are national treasure. I’m so proud that you represent our state. Your ability to elevate #KetanjiBrownJackson and offset demagoguery during the hearings was brilliant. I’m a better person for having heard your speech. pic.twitter.com/N7m1XHRUix
— Iris Suarez (@Suarez1Pro1977) March 23, 2022
I must admit I’m still emotional over yesterday’s speech by Sen. Cory Booker when discussing/talking to Judge #KetanjiBrownJackson.
And it’s bc I know this is exactly what she needed to hear at this time. You can tell that after he spoke, the rest the opposition didn’t matter.
— Preston Mitchum, he/him (@PrestonMitchum) March 24, 2022
Booker offered the nominee protection in a space where white folks’ treachery and racism were on full display. He is the real MVP!
