OPINION: Amy Coney Barrett exudes white mediocrity, and from now on I will refer to her as Jane Crow

To no one’s surprise the GOP once again proved their corruption and hypocrisy with the recent confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. The appointment of Barrett comes after the Trump administration unlawfully rushed to replace the seat of longtime Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg after her sudden death in late September. This also comes after Ginsburg’s dying wish was for her seat to be replaced after a new president is elected.

Barrett is now in the highest judicial position in the land meaning that she will oversee cases that deal with a wide range of issues that can impact many marginalized Americans. So if you’re not white, male, cisgender, heterosexual, able-bodied, middle or upper class, you pretty much have to hold your breath for any landmark legislation being passed, or repealed that would completely strip away your rights. 

She is known for her conservative views which now gives the Supreme Court a 6-3 conservative majority. With a 6-3 conservative majority the rights of women’s reproductive system, marriage equality, affordable healthcare, and so many more groundbreaking laws that protect the unprotected are all in jeopardy. 

These are rights that every single person is entitled to according to the founding fathers. Of course when the founding fathers all occupy the utmost positions of privilege in a country created on genocide and racial hierarchy, that interpretation gets misconstrued. 

Recurring themes of oppressed people constantly living in fear that a system will take away their basic human rights has become the new American dream for those who are comfortable in their positions of societal superiority. Seeing people struggle to make a case for why they should be seen and exist equally amongst all has become an addiction for those who want to maintain their place at the top of the ladder. 

Toni Morrison said it best. “If you can only be tall because somebody’s on their knees. Then you have a serious problem.” Just when you thought those who were on their knees finally had a chance to be just as tall as everyone else, people like Barret put them back on their knees. 

At this point, I’m more upset at the system that was created to have someone like Amy Coney Barrett who is subpar at best, and not qualified to have this position, gain this position because of her whiteness. 

According to motherjones.com, Barrett has never tried a case, she has never argued an appeal, she only has two years of private practice which never dealt with criminal cases, and has never served as a judge until 2017. She couldn’t even list the five freedoms citizens have under the first amendment during her confirmation hearing. To put this into perspective, immigrants can’t gain US citizenship without displaying knowledge of the first amendment, yet she doesn’t and is still confirmed to the highest court in the land.

She is a prime example of the revolving narrative of white people doing the bare minimum in situations where a person of color needs to be exceptional. And that exceptionalism is still undermined by white mediocrity. This is literally White Supremacy at work. 

If her name was too “ethnic” or “hard to pronounce” her application would’ve been thrown in the trash despite being qualified to do the job well. If she was dark skinned and had type 4c natural hair, she wouldn’t be in the position she is in. If she wore a hijab, she would’ve been called a terrorist and wouldn’t have the agency to occupy this space. There are so many more examples I can list that would have automatically disqualified her. She pretty much got this position because she’s a conservative white woman that conforms to the Trump administrations right-wing propaganda. 

 I give her the title of Jane Crow because many people forget that Mrs. Jane Crow, Jim Crow’s wife, is the matriarch of White Supremacy. 

Jane Crow is Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who prioritized white women’s liberation during the women’s suffrage movement over all women’s liberation.  

Jane Crow is Carolyn Bryant, the white woman who falsely accused Emmett Till of whistling at her, leading to his racial charged death in 1955. 

Jane Crow is the majority of white women that voted for Trump in 2016 after he admitted to using his patriarchal privilege to sexually assault women, call them out of their name, and grab women by their, you know.

Jane Crow is Sarah Page, the white woman who falsely accused Dick Rowland of assaulting her after he slipped in an elevator on his way to a segregated bathroom. Sparking the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921.

Jane Crow is Amy Coney Barrett, the white woman who likes to play up the idea of being a white savior because she adopted two Black children, while in the same breath reasserting negative racial tropes when speaking of her Black children. 

Not many people caught it, but during Barrett’s opening statement when she was introducing her family she spoke very highly of her white children. Calling them smart, boasting about how one wants to be an author, the other a future lawyer, and all these great things. 

However, when she spoke of her Black children, her daughter Vivian, who was brought from Haiti at a young age, was never supposed to be able to walk or talk normally. Now, she can “deadlift as much as the male athletes in her gym and has no trouble talking”. The other child JP, who was also rescued from Haiti, is the “happy-go-lucky” Black boy whose life has been greatly transformed for the better as a result of being saved by white people. 

These two distinctive descriptions Barrett gives of her Black children conjure up the centuries old controlling images of Black people that are still experienced to this day. They couldn’t be intelligent, mathematicians, and have bright futures. They are “happy-go-lucky” and as strong as men. 

That’s Jane Crow. And Amy Coney Barret is Jane Crow.