"It is part of the established tradition in the use of juries as instruments of public justice that the jury be a body truly representative of the community. For racial discrimination to result in the exclusion from Jury service of otherwise qualified groups not only violates our Constitution and the laws enacted under it, but is at war with our basic concepts of a democratic society and a representative government. We must consider this record in the light of these important principles. The fact that the written words of a state's laws hold out a promise that no such discrimination will be practiced is not enough. The Fourteenth Amendment requires that equal protection to all must be given — not merely promised."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Democratic Party (United States) politiciansJustices of the Supreme Court of the United StatesLawyers from the United StatesMembers of the United States SenatePoliticians from Alabama
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Writing for the court, Smith v. Texas, 311 U.S. 128 (1940).
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Hugo_Black
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Hugo Black
Hugo Lafayette Black (February 27, 1886 – September 25, 1971) was an American politician and jurist. A member of the Democratic Party, Black represented the state of Alabama in the United States Senate from 1927 to 1937, and served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1937 until he retired shortly before his death.
34 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Hugo Black →
Related Quotes
"[...] all legal restrictions which curtail the civil rights of a single racial group are immediately suspect. That is…"
"The liberty of every American citizen freely to come and to go must frequently, in the face of sudden danger, be temp…"
"Again, it is a new doctrine of constitutional law that one indicted for disobedience to an unconstitutional statute m…"
"The First Amendment: rests on the assumption that the widest dissemination of information from diverse and antagonist…"
"[I]t is true that [the provisions of the Bill of Rights] were designed to meet ancient evils. But they are the same k…"
"The 'establishment of religion' clause of the First Amendment means at least this: Neither a state nor the Federal Go…"
"That Amendment requires the state to be a neutral in its relations with groups of religious believers and nonbeliever…"
"The First Amendment has erected a wall between church and state. That wall must be kept high and impregnable. We coul…"
"To hold that a state cannot, consistently with the First and Fourteenth Amendments, utilize its public school system …"
"Under our constitutional system, courts stand against any winds that blow as havens of refuge for those who might oth…"