The Supreme Court has lost my respect with its rulings this session | Opinion

Since its establishment in 1789, the United States Supreme Court has dealt with various cases for the past 233 years. Some are milestone events, beginning with the Marbury v. Madison case in 1803 in which the court declared a law passed by Congress unconstitutional. Other early cases that interested me were Dred Scott v. Sanford in 1857 and Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896.

(Editor's note: An earlier version of this guest column inaccurately described the circumstances of Plessy v. Ferguson.)

Dred Scott, a slave who was taken to free territory, filed a lawsuit claiming that since he had lived on free soil, that entitled him to freedom. Chief Justice Roger B. Taney disagreed and ruled that since Black people were not citizens, he could not sue in federal court. Homer Plessy was also a Black man, who agreed to be a test case and be arrested in an attempt to overturn a new law requiring Black passengers to sit in segregated train cars. . The court upheld the separate-but-equal accommodations law.

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The first case of consequence in my lifetime was Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka in 1954, which outlawed school segregation the year after I finished high school. Nineteen years later the court legalized abortions in Roe v. Wade. While I don't believe in abortions, I believe in a woman's right to choose.

I had a lot of respect for the Supreme Court and its interpretations of the laws of the land, but several of its rulings this session have changed my mind. The majority members seem to be ideologues and political hacks. They allow their own prejudices and political agendas to outweigh any genuine judicial deliberations.

During the Senate confirmation hearings of the three Trump appointees, the candidates acted as neutral as could be on the question of Roe v. Wade. They said it was established law. They didn't use any weasel words to dodge the issue, but were flat out duplicitous. Members of the court should be men and women of unquestioned integrity.

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Then for good measure in showing their bent, the same majority said that prayer in public schools was legal, too. There was a time in this country when most of the students were Baptists, Methodists and Presbyterians and could read from the same Bible and pray alike. Now the classroom, ballfield and arena have students who represent the major religions of the world. Our Christian prayers are not the only ones to be offered.

Many students will feel uncomfortable having to participate and ostracized for not participating in a religious activity conducted by their coach, who can make or break a career. They understand what being a "team player" means.

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But what's next on the agenda for that majority? At least one of them believes in interracial marriage that has become established law. Black people, women and gay people are not a part of the original Constitution and could be at risk in future decisions.

Those who agree with the court's decisions have the right to be jubilant; their beliefs have been upheld. But the men and woman of the court who brought the jubilation fell short of the honor and integrity that America expects of them. They put personal agendas above allegiance to their oaths.

Robert J. Booker is a freelance writer and former executive director of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center. He may be reached at 865-546-1576.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: The Supreme Court has lost my respect with its rulings this session