July 12, 2018

United States Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith
113 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senator Hyde-Smith,

The Mississippi State Conference NAACP (MS NAACP) is very concerned about who will be the next person confirmed to a life-time appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court. The MS NAACP, formed in 1945 and the state’s foremost civil rights organization, has been on the frontlines of all major civil rights battles in Mississippi and across the South. With a revolving membership of more than 11,000 and members within 74 of Mississippi’s 82 counties, the MS NAACP advocates for economic, educational, political and social justice for all people to ensure a society that is free from racial discrimination and division. We understand all too well the crucial role the Supreme Court plays in establishing and protecting civil rights.

With cases like Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court has been strategic to the progress in the struggle for civil rights for all Americans. The Supreme Court is the last line of defense on civil rights, human rights, and civil liberties. It has the final say on our rights under the American Constitution. In any given term, the Court decides important cases including those regarding civil rights, voting rights, equal educational opportunity, employment discrimination, fair housing, access to health care, the environment, immigration, equality for the LGBTQ community, women’s rights, and criminal justice issues. Of which, all these issues that are important the Mississippi NAACP and its members.

The stakes for nominating a replacement could not be higher at this moment in our history. Now is not the time for a divisive and/or biased appointment who will further shake the public’s faith in our nation’s justice system. The constitutional process for appointing and confirming the next justice must deliberative and conducted with bipartisan support. The Senate should not rush to consider a nominee until a new Senate is sworn in, in January 2019, after the results of the 2018 midterm election. This will fully allow the nominee to be thoroughly vetted, and the American people, those who will be most affected by the confirmation, to have a voice in this crucial part of the democratic process.

The Mississippi State Conference NAACP requests that you do all you can to ensure that the next Supreme Court Justice is qualified and appointed through a process that includes input from the new Senate that will be worn in January 2019. It is vitally important that this Supreme Court Justice cares more about Americans’ constitutional rights than about promoting an extremist ideology. We look forward to hearing from you soon to let us know of your position on the appointment and confirmation process for the next Supreme Court Justice.

Sincerely,

Charles Hampton, President
Mississippi State Conference NAACP