Caption: Jackson Drives His Own Car-"I'm probably the only cabinet member who does," he guesses with a self-conscious smile. What the car - A Buick license 140 - lacks in dignity it makes up in zip. It has red leather upholstery, folding opera seats. Its stall in the Department of Justice garage is right next Jackson's private elevator.     

Justice at Home

"If I cannot claim to be at home at a meeting of The Virginia State Bar Association, at least I refuse to be a stranger in one. As a resident of Fairfax County since I went on the court my neighbors there voted me an honorary membership in the local bar association, but l have an even better claim to be among them. I was wandering in among the judges today, hearing the Supreme Court get dusted off and don't think everyone knew what good claim I had to be present." 

-Robert H. Jackson, A Country Lawyer at an International Court

Welcome to Justice at Home, a special edition newsletter from the Robert H. Jackson Center that hits your inbox every 3 weeks with updates on our virtual programming, lesson plans and lectures, and interesting finds from our digital archives. 

If you enjoy this newsletter, please pass it on to a friend and share it on your social media pages. Make sure to tag us (@roberthjacksoncenter) and use the hashtag #JusticeatHome.

Upcoming Events

October 8 at 12pm: Fuel on the Fire: The Shadowy World of Aiding and Abetting War Crimes in the Middle East

This free webinar focuses on the hidden and insidious problems that result in aiding and abetting international war crimes. Join our panel of experts: David Crane, Prince Zeid Ra’ad al Hussein, Bill Wiley, Radwan Ziadeh and moderator Beth Van Schaack for a lively discussion and an opportunity to ask your questions. Register via Zoom here.

October 11 at 2pm: National Coming Out Day

In collaboration with the Fenton LGBTQIA+ History Exhibit, Jamestown Pride, Prevention Works, HOPE Chautauqua, and the Chautauqua County Mental Health Association, the Robert H. Jackson Center is hosting this event virtually as a place to connect and celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community. Register here to join the event via Zoom. The stories shared on Oct. 11 will be added to the Fenton History Center’s archives on the local LGBTQIA+ community.

Jackson at the podium in Nuremberg from The Raymond D'Addario Collection

Tea Time with the Jackson Center: The Indictments

Tea Time with the Jackson Center takes both a look back at Jackson's place in history and a look forward showing how his legacy influences current events. We have moved to a biweekly schedule for future Teas while keeping the Thursday at 3pm time slot. We'll continue sending emails announcing our Tea guests and topics on the new biweekly schedule.

Our October 15 Tea features St. John's Law Professor, Elizabeth S. Lenna Fellow and RHJC Board member John Q. Barrett. Prof. Barrett will join Kristan for a discussion on the indictments presented to the International Military Tribunal on October 18, 1945. The indictments were filed in Berlin and accused 24 individuals and selected Nazi organizations of conspiracy, crimes against peace, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

If you have a Facebook account, follow RHJC's page and Kristan's page. You can interact with us and ask questions of our guests by commenting on the video during the live stream. 

Other recent #TeawithRHJC guests have included:

Debbie Cenziper, an investigative reporter for the Washington Post and our 2020 Al & Marge Brown Lecturer on WWII. She spoke on her most recent book, Citizen 865: The Hunt for Hitler's Hidden Soldiers in America. The book recounts the remarkable true story of a team of Nazi hunters at the U.S. Department of Justice as they raced against time to uncover members of a brutal SS killing force who disappeared in America following WWII.

Marcia Johnson-Blanco and Ezra Rosenberg, Co-Directors of the Voting Rights Project at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The Voting Rights Project focuses on providing education, advocacy, and legal protection for traditionally disenfranchised voters. Marcia, Ezra, and Kristan discussed voter registration, the Constitution and the voting rights laws, voter rolls, and absentee and mail-in voting.  

Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram, and share the videos with your family and friends on social media using the hashtag #TeawithRHJC.

SCOTUS Justices on Robert H. Jackson

The Jackson Center has welcomed several Supreme Court Justices to Chautauqua County and the historic Kent Mansion. This video include excerpts from speeches by and interviews with Justice Sandra Day O'Connor (1996 & 2007), Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist (2003), Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. (2013) and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (2013), reflecting on Justice Jackson and the Robert H. Jackson Center.

This Month in Jackson History

October 4, 1890: Irene Alice Gerhardt was born in 1890 in Jockey Hill, NY. She met Robert H. Jackson in 1911 in Albany, where she was a state secretary & he was a law student. They married in 1916.

October 9, 1954: Robert H. Jackson died from a heart attack. Funeral services were held for him at the Washington National Cathedral and St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Jamestown, NY. Jackson's Supreme Court colleagues traveled together to Jamestown for his funeral. He is buried in Maple Grove Cemetery in Frewsburg, NY. 

From Jackson's Desk

Robert H. Jackson was a gifted orator and writer, and many of his articles and transcripts of his speeches are housed on our website. We feature them in our weekly #TuesdayMotivation and #SundayQuote on the Jackson Center's social media pages. 

In a 1944 address to the New York State Bar Association judicial section, SCOTUS Justice Jackson spoke on the evolution of the judicial system and the challenges facing American courts in turbulent times: 

"It has never seemed to me that it is the function of the judiciary, notwithstanding the immense grant of power to it under our system, to try to determine what the philosophy or policy of our organized society shall be. That must be decided
at the polls. In the nature of things great movements and currents of economic or political life will not, and should not, submit to judicial control."

Read the entire address here.

From the Archives

This 1941 international news photo celebrates Jackson's appointment to the Supreme Court as an Associate Justice. Caption: "Jackson Named Associate Justice of Supreme Court. President Roosevelt today elevated Harlan Fiske Stone to be Chief Justice of the United States. At the same time President Roosevelt nominated Sen. James F. Byrnes (D) of South Carolina and Attorney General Robert H. Jackson to fill the two vacancies on the high court. Jackson technically succeeds Stone, who in turn succeeds Chief Justice Hughes, retired effective July 1."

Your Gifts, Your Future

Your gift of any amount to our 2020 Annual Fund helps support the Robert H. Jackson Center's curriculum-based grade school programs, summer internships for college and law students, Teacher Fellows program, notable lecture series, CLEs, and topical forums that invite meaningful conversations about important issues of law and how the law impacts our lives today.

With a gift of just $10 or more, consider joining our Bench Circle of monthly or quarterly supporters today and help sustain the kind of world in which you want to live.