46 Years Ago: Thurgood Marshall Sworn In Becoming First African American Supreme Court Justice

THE HUFFINGTON POST 5 Hours Ago

On this day in 1967, Thurgood Marshall was sworn into the United States Supreme Court, making him the first African American to hold one of the prestigious seats. When he joined the bench, the Supreme Court was fairly liberal. Landmark cases such as 1973’s Roe v. Wade were passed under his tenure. Marshall also shared his strong opinions about that the death penalty is unconstitutional in the de facto moratorium for the 1972 case Furman v. Georgia. Over the years however, the judges appointed became more conservative.

He stepped down from the bench in 1991 and passed away in 1993 at the age of 84.

Take a look at some photos from the day he was sworn in.

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