当乔·拜登总统准备兑现他提名第一名黑人女性进入最高法院的承诺时，众议院的十多名黑人女议员周四呼吁他选择一名致力于推进民权的被提名人。
由众议员柯里·布什领导的14名黑人女议员组成的小组。已经给总统写了一封信，概述了他们的优先事项，特别提请注意美国参议院中没有黑人女性。
这封信由美国广播公司新闻获得，信中写道:“我们作为在美国众议院任职的14名黑人女议员的集体写信给你，但代表美国超过2100万黑人女性写信。“美国参议院没有一名黑人女性投票确认第一位被提名进入最高法院的黑人女性。出于这个原因，我们作为一个集体写信来赞扬你的这一历史性宣布，并要求被提名者反映出深刻和持久的承诺，以道德和法律的清晰度进行裁决，”成员补充说。
拜登总统表示，经过“严格”的遴选过程，他预计将在2月底前选出一名候选人。在最高法院的115名法官中，有108名是白人。从未有黑人妇女被提名担任高等法院法官。拜登竞选时承诺改变这种状况。
拜登今年1月在白宫举行的斯蒂芬·布雷耶(Stephen Breyer)大法官正式宣布退休仪式上表示:“我将提名的人将是一个具有非凡资历、品格、经验和正直的人，这个人将是第一位被提名进入美国最高法院的黑人女性。
黑人女性被认为是民主党的中坚力量，在确保拜登2020年大选获胜方面发挥了关键作用。在佐治亚州，拜登以微弱优势获胜——出口民调显示，超过90%的黑人女性支持拜登。
总统说:“在我看来，早就应该这样做了，我在竞选总统期间做出了这一承诺，我将信守这一承诺。
总统获得历史性提名之际，大法官们正在审理一些美国最具争议性的问题:堕胎权、持枪权、宗教自由和平权行动。倾向保守的法院周一对民权组织进行了打击修复了阿拉巴马州共和党绘制的新国会地图批评人士说，这将剥夺黑人选民的选举权。资深法律分析师称这是美国最高法院一代人以来最重要的几年之一。
在给总统的信中，国会黑人核心小组的成员，包括俄亥俄州民主党主席乔伊丝·贝蒂、加利福尼亚州民主党众议员李金浔和马萨诸塞州民主党众议员阿扬娜·普雷斯利。瑟古德·马歇尔法官是45年前第一位被提名到法庭的黑人，他提到了自己在推进民权方面的记录，以及在公平代表权和死刑方面的里程碑式的裁决中所扮演的角色。
曼德尔·恩根/法新社，通过盖蒂图像，文件
国会黑人核心小组主席乔伊斯·贝蒂在和平之后发表讲话.
国会黑人核心小组的十多名成员说:“任命一名黑人女法官，在努力推进种族正义和消除根深蒂固的白人至上主义方面有着既定的记录，这对恢复最高法院的信誉至关重要。
布什在一次圆桌会议上对包括美国广播公司新闻在内的记者说:“让一名黑人女性进入这个席位是必要的，但我们希望确保这是一名在刑事司法改革方面表现突出的黑人女性，拥有那样的历史，在工人保护方面表现突出。“我没有名字。我希望有这些资格的人能够升到最高。”
布什拒绝认可拜登名单上的某个人。
她补充道，“我只是不认为这是我们让黑人女性与试图获得这个位置的人竞争的地方。”
Black female lawmakers call on Biden to pick Supreme Court nominee committed to civil rights
As President Joe Biden prepares to make good on his promise to nominate the first Black woman to the Supreme Court, more than a dozen black female lawmakers in the House of Representatives on Thursday called on him to select a nominee committed to advancing civil rights.
The group of 14 Black female lawmakers led by Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., have sent a letter to the president outlining their priorities, specifically drawing attention to the absence of Black women in the U.S. Senate.
"We write to you as a collective of 14 Black women lawmakers serving in the United States House of Representatives, but write on behalf of the over 21 million Black women in America," the letter, obtained by ABC News, states. "There is not a single Black woman in the United States Senate to vote to confirm the first Black woman nominated to the Supreme Court. For this reason, we write as a collective to commend you for this historic announcement, and ask that the nominee reflect a deep and abiding commitment to adjudicate with moral and legal clarity," the members add.
President Biden has said he expects to choose a nominee before the end of February following a "rigorous" selection process. Of the 115 Supreme Court justices, 108 have been white men. No Black woman has ever been nominated to serve on the high court bench. Biden campaigned on a promise to change that.
"The person I will nominate will be someone with extraordinary qualifications, character, experience and integrity and that person will be the first Black woman ever nominated to the United States Supreme Court," Biden said at Justice Stephen Breyer's formal retirement announcement at the White House in January.
Black women are considered the backbone of the Democratic Party and played a critical role in securing Biden's election victory in 2020. In Georgia, a state Biden won by a razor thin margin -- exit polls showed more than 90% of Black women backed Biden.
"It's long overdue in my opinion, I made that commitment during the campaign for president, and I will keep that commitment," the president said.
The president's historic nomination comes as the justices take up cases on some of the nation's most divisive issues: abortion rights, gun rights, religion freedom and affirmative action. The conservative-leaning court dealt a blow to civil rights organizations on Monday when itrestored Alabama's new GOP-drawn congressional mapcritics say will disenfranchise Black voters. Veteran legal analysts have called it one of the most consequential years for the nation's highest court in a generation.
In their letter to the president, members of the Congressional Black Caucus, including chairwoman Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., and Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., point to Justice Thurgood Marshall, the first Black person nominated to the court more than 45 years ago -- noting his record of advancing civil rights and the role it played in landmark rulings regarding fair representation and the death penalty.
"The appointment of a Black woman justice with an established record of working to advance racial justice and eradicating entrenched white supremacy is of the utmost importance in reviving the Supreme Court's credibility," more than a dozen members of the Congressional Black Caucus said.
"Getting a Black woman in the seat is necessary, but we want to make sure that it's a Black woman who's strong on criminal justice reform, has that type of history, strong on worker protections," Bush told reporters, including ABC News, during a roundtable. "I don't have a name. I want the person who has those qualifications to rise to the top."
Bush declined to endorse a specific person on Biden's short list.
She added, "I just don't think it's our place to pit Black women against each other who are trying to get this spot."
