Regan: I, Ronald Regan, do solemnly swear that I will…
The federal courts gradual weakening of civil rights laws is part of a conservative trend that dates back over twenty years
Regan: …so help me God.
Eva Paterson: When Ronald Regan came into office the Regan Justice Department decided it would systematically go about attacking the laws and they would have judges in place who would be able to interpret in the law in a way that was reactionary.
Martin Garbus: What Regan hit upon was to appoint people who were young and very political. And what he did is he appointed the youngest judges that any other president has ever done. When you appoint a judge that early on, he’s a lifetime appointment and they were very unashamed to say that they were using the legal system to achieve political goals. They have transformed the legal system. It had been done incrementally, people didn’t see it, it is now gathered into an avalanche.
George Bush: I’m pleased to welcome my judicial nominees to the White House. A federal judge holds a position of great influence and respect… and can hold it for a lifetime.
Trevor Coleman: One day you’re going to turn around and you’re going to find that the rights you thought that you had you don’t have anymore, discrimination laws that you thought were there to protect you, they’re not there anymore, and the civil liberties that you once enjoyed so freely, they’re not there anymore. Now that’s thanks to the right- wing onslaught of the federal judiciary.
Eva Paterson: The right wing has learned to be very disciplined. The progressive community needs to be that disciplined as well. (Clapping) We need to organize ourselves consciously… New York needs to know what California is doing, Alaska needs to know what Puerto Rico is doing. We need to understand that we’re part of an effort moving towards a vision, we need to be organized.
Janell Byrd- Chichester: The conservative effort the change the court to where is now is able to be successful without people really being aware of it because the issues often are not that interesting or they’re using legalistic terms that people don’t pay that much attention to. So our challenge as lawyers is to put this in language that people understand and to get the message out about what’s happening.
Federal judges are nominated by the president and approved by the Senate. But since presidents and senators are elected by the public, the public ultimately controls the judiciary.
Eva Paterson: At least for today this is still a democracy and that the people are the forth branch of government. Many people believe that the law is neutral but the law is made by judges with political ideology, so the people need to understand when reactionary judges are nominated you need to call your senator and say “Oh no, do not vote for these people.”
Juan Figueroa: It’s really, really important that we break this down. In the end the final arbiter of laws in this country isn’t the president, it isn’t Congress, it isn’t your mayor, it’s the Supreme Court of the United States. And we need to find a way; we gotta find a way of people understanding that branch of government and own it! In the same way that we own, or should own the Legislative and Executive branches of our government.
Patricia Garrett: I do know one thing… I want my civil rights. I worked for them, I earned them, I am a human being and I, and I think that’s the whole issue: these are human rights. I have a right not to be treated in a bad way and you have that right too.
Bonnie Sanders: I want to keep on, keep on, keep on… I know there’s somewhere, somehow something that we’re overlooking… even if we have to go backwards and start all over again. Something has gotta be done.