One of the exciting highlights of Black History Month in the United States was the swearing in of five Jamaican-American women, among others, allowing them to make appearances before the Supreme Court of the US (SCOTUS) in Washington, DC.

The trailblazing women, most from Palm Beach County, Florida, are attorney Alison Smith, first black woman to be elected president of the nearly century-old Broward County Bar Association; Circuit Judge Maxine Cheesman; Judge Maxine Williams; Circuit Judge Cymonie Rowe; and attorney Lisa Quarrie.

Appropriately, the prestigious swearing-in ceremony was attended by the most recent and first black woman judge of the SCOTUS, Ketanji Brown Jackson. Justice Brett Kavanaugh also attended.

The women then took keepsake photos under the ‘watchful eye’ (portrait) of the late Justice Thurgood Marshall, the first black US Supreme Court judge, and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, known for her legendary campaign for women’s equality.

Smith, who grew up in St Elizabeth and Manchester, Jamaica, said the swearing-in was preceded by “a rigorous application process starting basically a year out, filling out all sorts of paperwork, undergoing background checks and the like.

“Which is why you have even judges who have been practising for a long time doing it so much later in their careers.”