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Statement by Hillary Clinton on the Anniversary of the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall's Appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court

October 02, 2007

Forty years ago today, Justice Thurgood Marshall became the first African-American to sit on the United States Supreme Court. His swearing-in capped more than a quarter century of legal achievement in which he fundamentally transformed our nation's civil rights landscape, and it launched nearly a quarter century of faithful and wise service to the Court and to the Constitution. As we contend with right-wing efforts to undermine the promise of Brown v. Board of Education - Thurgood Marshall's greatest legacy - and as we witness all-too-frequent reminders that the scales of justice are still out of balance for African-Americans, we would do well to remember what Justice Marshall meant to this country, what he stood for, and what he achieved. And we must commit ourselves not only to defending his achievements, but to continuing the march along the path he laid. That is why I have set forth a specific agenda to promote civil rights and fight discrimination in the 21st century. I will restore professionalism and remove politics from the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, strengthen our civil rights laws, and beef up federal civil rights enforcement.

Hillary Clinton, Statement by Hillary Clinton on the Anniversary of the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall's Appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/291083

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