Originalism

 

“Originality is Simply a Pair of Fresh Eyes”
~Thomas Wentworth Higginson

If someone calls you an “O.G.” take it as a compliment. The abbreviated term is usually short for, “Original Gangster,” or “Old School.” It is often an homage to the style or approach of a person, usually older in age, whose tactics, values, or beliefs were likely popular during an era from years past. The qualities embodied by an “O.G.” can sometimes be unconventional, dated, yet effective. But not everyone is an “O.G.” When you were young, you certainly knew of an older person whose thinking and beliefs were dated and not reflective of our community’s current values. One reason beliefs become outdated is because as people we evolve.

When a Supreme Court Justice calls themself an “originalist” it often means they recognize the United States Constitution to be a fixed, original document that defines the law of the land. They frequently interpret the Constitution through a lens of the framers’ 1787 intent. Contrary to an “originalist” is a style of constitutional interpretation, understanding the document as one that lives and breathes, adapting with the times regardless of a formal amendment.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett described her originalist view in her Senate confirmation hearings as, "I interpret the Constitution as a law; I understand it to have the meaning that it had at the time people ratified it.  That meaning doesn't change over time and it is not up to me to update it or infuse my policy views into it."  

At the time people ratified the constitution women weren't full citizens, Black people weren't recognized as people, but as property, and indigenous people in this land weren't recognized as citizens of the land they inhabited for years prior to Europeans arriving.  

The fascination with originality in this country remembers the good but forgets the bad.  Because the true origins of this country were founded on the false idea of white supremacy.  that false ideology, with the biases accompanying it, permeated many of the policies that created the historic injustices of this country.    

There are certainly some redeeming qualities of the all-white, male version of the U.S. Constitution written in 1787, most notably the separation of powers designed to avoid tyrannical rule.  But to be loyal to a 234-year-old document in its original format and intentions can only come at the expense of the rights and dignity of the marginalized communities who were not invited to the Constitutional convention in Philadelphia, PA.

With age often comes wisdom. But this idea applies to people, not documents. When people revere the U.S. Constitution, they must acknowledge its deficiencies which we’ve been correcting through movements, legislation, and amendments since its adoption. Justice Barrett is not an “O.G.” and perhaps the next appointment to the Supreme Court bench will view the U.S. Constitution with 21^st-Century values of equity in mind.

William C. Snowden, is the Founder of The Juror Project and proud son of Billy Ray and Kay Snowden.