Biography

Ketanji Brown Jackson was born on September 14, 1970 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. She has been married to Patrick G. Jackson since October 12, 1996. They have two children.

She is related (via marriage) to former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. Her husband's (Patrick G. Jackson) twin brother, William, is married to Paul's sister-in-law, Dana.

Graduated from Harvard University.

While she was a student at Harvard University, in her drama class she was a scene partner to future Academy Award winner Matt Damon.

While she was still a student at Harvard University, she once shared a drama class with then unknown Matt Damon where they were paired as partners for a scene in Irish playwright Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot." Although they did not perform in front of a live audience, they memorized a part of the play together. Many years later Damon was astonished to learn that Jackson had been appointed to Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States by President Joe Biden in 2022.

On February 25, 2022, President Joe Biden nominated her to become the 116th Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. She was confirmed by a 53-47 vote of the U.S. Senate on April 7, 2022, making her the very first black woman to sit on the Supreme Court. She is also the first public defender the sit on the United States Supreme Court.

[on her historic confirmation to Supreme Court] It has taken 232 years and 115 prior appointments for a Black woman to be selected to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States, but we've made it. We've made it, all of us. In my family, it took just one generation to go from segregation to the Supreme Court

[on her historic confirmation to Supreme Court while thanking her family] This is all pretty exciting for me, but nothing has brought me greater joy than being your mother