Supreme Court: Reflection

The U.S Supreme Court

Power, Trust, and the Constitution

 After watching this documentary on the history of the history of the U.S. Supreme Court, I came away with a stronger appreciation for how influential and complex the Court really is. What stood out most was that the Supreme Court is considered the most private branch of government, yet its decisions shape the lives of millions of Americans. 

 The documentary explained that presidents have often tried to make themselves more powerful than the Court. In contrast, being appointed to the Supreme Court was described as so rare that it is like “being struck by lightning.”

 The Court's history is deeply connected to the growth of the nation itself. When the federal government moved to Washington in 1801, John Marshall became Chief Justice, and the landmark case Marbury v. Madison helped establish the Supreme Court as a co-equal branch of government.

Not every chapter of the Court's history reflects America's highest ideals.

Civil Rights Movement 1950-1960s

First Amendment

The Northwest Ordinance of 1787, passed by the Confederation Congress, is often cited as an early landmark in American civil liberties: it guaranteed settlers in the new territories rights such as trial by jury, habeas corpus, and freedom of religion, and famously banned slavery north of the Ohio River in Article VI  though it also contained a fugitive-slave clause, a contradiction that foreshadowed the tensions the Fourteenth Amendment would later try to resolve. Nearly 240 years later, commentators across the political spectrum continue to argue that the promises embedded in the First Amendment (freedom of speech, press, assembly, and religion) and the Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection and due process) are unevenly applied. Some point to disparities in how protest, speech, and assembly rights are policed depending on the group involved; others point to unequal treatment in the justice system, in access to legal representation, or in how "equal protection" is interpreted by courts today. These are genuinely disputed
claims  : reasonable people disagree sharply about which specific policies or incidents constitute a constitutional violation versus a policy disagreement — but the throughline connecting 1787 to today is the unfinished argument over whether foundational rights are actually extended equally to everyone they were written to protect. As is often noted, not every chapter of the Court's history reflects America's highest ideals — cases like Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) and Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) are widely regarded, including by later courts, as having failed to live up to the Constitution's own stated principles, which is part of why the Fourteenth Amendment and its later interpretations have been such contested, evolving ground.

The Ordinance of 1787

 The documentary discussed a time when Black Americans could not be considered citizens and highlighted the Dred Scott decision as one of the Court's most controversial rulings. It also explained how the Civil War and the 14th Amendment expanded rights and protections against state power, with the amendment being described as a "second Bill of Rights."

14th Amendment Protest 1917

 Another theme was how the public often misunderstands what happens inside the Supreme Court. While many people think of it as a place where judges simply issue rulings, the documentary portrayed it as an ongoing conversation among all nine justices, where difficult questions are debated and challenged.

 I was especially interested in the section on opinion writing, which was described as the "poetry of law." Law clerks assist with drafting opinions, and justices frequently disagree with one another's reasoning while attempting to persuade colleagues to join their position.

Compromise is inevitable.

 A majority can become a minority, and the Court must eventually reach a decision before the end of its term in late June. The documentary concluded by arguing that the Court's greatest strength is not force, but trust. Its authority depends on defending the Constitution and maintaining the confidence of the American people.