The Washington Post - USA (2022-04-10)

SUNDAY, APRIL 10 , 2022. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ RE C7

kitchen table.

“I wanted little Black girls and

little kids in general to look at it

and really feel like it was fun and

familiar and something that

could grow with them and grow

with this block and the city at

large,” Calhoun said.

A series of rainy days last week

kept Calhoun from completing

work on the mural in time for the

block party. But Saturday after-

noon, her goal of inspiring chil-

dren, especially young Black girls,

seemed well in reach.

Off into the road, Serena, 6,

stood in line to get her face

painted with her mom, Maria

Valderrama, 30, a bright pink

scooter and fluffy stuffed dog,

Puppy.

“I want her to celebrate the

achievements of Black figures in

history,” said Valderrama, a para-

legal and law student. “I want her

to remember she was here when

it happened and that she has role

models she can see herself in.”

The pair twirled in the street.

They used chalk to scribble pink

heart on the asphalt. Beside their

sketches, another drawing, this

one in cool greens and blues,

depicted the face of a new role

model for Serena, alongside the

words “Justice Jackson.”

BY TEO ARMUS

Growing up, Jessica Childress
saw few images of Black women
in the legal world, she said. As t he
Petworth resident made her way
through law school in Virginia
and then passed the bar, she was
often the only one in the room.
So when Ketanji Brown Jack-
son was confirmed as the first
Black woman on the Supreme
Court this week, Childress
watched with awe at “the most
historic moment” of her own legal
career.
“To be born here and then
come home and sit in the highest
court of the land. Isn’t that the
essence of the American Dream?”
asked Childress, 37. “She is part of
a community of Black women
who overcame immense chal-
lenges to get to where she is
today.”
Childress was all smiles on
Saturday afternoon as she cel-
ebrated that achievement at a
block party in Northwest Wash-
ington. The block party was orga-
nized by the Office of the Mayor in
partnership with She Will Rise,
which had been pushing to get a
Black woman onto the Supreme
Court since the summer of 2020.
Their campaign had included a
mural depicting a nameless Black
woman in her legal robes. So it
was only natural that their victo-
ry p arty i nclude a new work of art,
one with the face of Jackson
looking over S Street NW.
“This commemorates how im-
portant this moment is for the
country, not just for Black wom-
en,” said April Reign, one of the
She Will Rise organizers. “We
know representation matters. It
is true that you cannot be what
you cannot see.”
A sprinkling of light rain could
not stop the celebration Saturday
afternoon. Before a lively crowd,
speaker after speaker lauded the
historic nature of her confirma-
tion. A double Dutch team
whirred ropes around elementa-
ry-schoolers, and teams of college
rollerskaters spun in loops and
figure eights on the asphalt.
Nia Keturah Calhoun had
worked on the first “She Will
Rise” mural and took on this piece
as her first solo project. She tried
to mix a feeling of joy, she said,
with a recognition of the racism
and sexism that Jackson faced
after being nominated.
“To be the first of anything, you
have to break through a glass
ceiling. Ouch, right? Your head
will get bloody,” said Calhoun, a
third-generation Washingtonian.
“A nyone watching that confirma-
tion hearing can speak to that
pain and that discomfort.”
Jagged shapes woven through-
out the piece to represent the
glass shattered by the future jus-
tice, Calhoun said. Dark yet play-
ful tones are a callout to the
coloring book that Jackson said
she would scribble in while her
father studied for the bar at their

Block party

celebrates

Jackson’s

ascension

TOP: Children walk on the street with chalk art at a block party in Northwest Washington on Saturday to celebrate the historic confirmation of Ketanji Brown Jackson as

the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court. The festivities were organized by the Office of the Mayor and She Will Rise, which campaigned for nearly two years

to get a Black woman confirmed to the Supreme Court. TOP LEFT: A boy rests his head as his mother dances to music with the crowd at the block party. TOP RIGHT: The

Howard University Showtime marching band kicked off the block party with dancers beneath the site of a mural painted in honor of the confirmation of Jackson.

PHOTOS BY BILL O’LEARY/THE WASHINGTON POST

“She is part of a community of Black

women who overcame immense

challenges to get to where she is today.”

Jessica Childress, an attorney who lives in the District on the historic

confirmation of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court

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