Citizens for Judicial Fairness Applauds Nomination of N. Christopher Griffiths To Be Second Black Delaware Supreme Court Justice in History; Urges Further Diversification from Governor John Carney

Friday, Citizens for Judicial Fairness applauded the nomination of N. Christopher Griffiths to fill one of two vacancies on the Delaware Supreme Court, making him just the second Black justice nominated to the state’s Supreme Court in its 230-plus year history, while urging Governor Carney to further diversify the state’s top courts, including the all-white Chancery Court.

Keandra McDole, activist and Citizens for Judicial Fairness spokesperson said, “N. Christopher Griffiths’ nomination to be the second Black justice ever on the Delaware Supreme Court is a victory for all of us who have organized for courts that look like us rather than the all-white courts of old. There is no question that our hard work and dedicated advocacy across Delaware since these vacancies opened was instrumental in compelling Governor Carney to do the right thing and make this appointment. But we need more, and this nomination is merely a first step. The Chancery Court remains all-white and Black justices continue to be drastically underrepresented in our state’s top courts. We will not rest until the judiciary in our state actually looks like the people of our state.”

Said civil rights icon Reverend Al Sharpton, “Today, we celebrate the appointment of Chris Griffiths, a prominent Black attorney, to the highest court in Delaware. Tomorrow, we get right back to work to elevate many more like Chris Griffiths to important judgeships across Delaware’s courts. The fight for diversity and inclusion is more than a righteous struggle to ensure more Black leaders have positions of power after centuries of exclusion — it’s a fundamentally American ideal that the institutions that shape the laws and policies that govern us must include voices from all of our communities. This is how we make real the promise of the Constitution’s loftiest principles, and this is the fight we must continue into the future — even as we take inspiration now from Chris Griffiths’ well-deserved nomination.”