Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson talks Supreme Court ethics, family in 'Lovely One'

NPR's Book of the Day

NPR

Books, Arts

4.2 • 672 Ratings

🗓️ 4 September 2024

⏱️ 15 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Supreme Court Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson remembers her first brush with the national spotlight as "white hot." When President Biden nominated her in 2022 to replace retiring Justice Stephen Breyer, it kicked off an intense confirmation process for Jackson, the first Black woman ever appointed to the Supreme Court. In her new book, Lovely One: A Memoir, Jackson charts her path from the segregated South to the country's highest court. In today's episode, Justice Jackson sits down with NPR's Juana Summers to discuss whether the Supreme Court should adopt a more binding ethics code, the court's ability to deliver a credible opinion on this year's election and her family life, including her daughter's autism diagnosis.

To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hey, it's Impair's book of the day. I'm Andrew Limbaugh. Supreme Court Justice Kutansji
0:06.8	Brown Jackson has a new memoir out. It's titled Lovely One and it traces her life from growing up
0:12.4	in the segregated South to being a Supreme Court justice. And it's an interesting time to be a
0:18.9	Supreme Court justice promoting a new book because people
0:22.3	are not so hot on the Supreme Court these days, especially after the reporting surrounding
0:27.1	Justice Clarence Thomas and the undisclosed gifts he received from billionaire Holland Crow.
0:32.0	A Pew study from earlier this summer showed that favorable views of the court remain pretty close to historic lows.
0:40.2	Justice Jackson spoke with NPR's Juana Summers about the book, and we'll hear about the more
0:44.3	personal aspects she reveals in her memoir in a bit.
0:47.5	But first, here they are talking about the politics of the judicial branch after the break.
0:53.7	In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.
0:58.5	Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors.
1:03.1	On our new show, Sources and Methods.
1:05.1	NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people,
1:08.8	helping you understand why distant events matter here at home.
1:12.7	Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
1:18.2	Supreme Court Justice Katanji Brown Jackson has this recollection of her entry into the national
1:24.3	spotlight just about two years ago. I had been through what I thought was a
1:29.5	pretty treacherous time for those who remember the confirmation hearings. Senators on the
1:35.8	Judiciary Committee made remarks and suggestions about her judicial philosophy, experience, and
1:42.6	identity that at times got pretty hostile.
1:46.2	When it is about philosophy, when it's somebody of color on our side, it's about we're all
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from NPR, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of NPR and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.