Robert H. Jackson as an infant, and as the Chief Prosecutor for the United States at Nuremberg

Justice at Home

"I suppose the American people, on whose eternal vigilance liberty ultimately depends, are well agreed that what they want of the courts is that they both preserve liberty and protect security, finding ways to reconcile the two needs so that we do not lose our heritage in defending it." 

-Robert H. Jackson, Wartime Security and Liberty Under Law

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

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

Tea Time with the Jackson Center 

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 and contributes to our discussions today. Our 2021 programming theme is The Work Left to Do, and within that theme we'll explore a different focus each month. In the first Tea of the month, we will look at a topic from a broader perspective to understand the universal and legal challenges. For the second Tea of the month, we will speak with those doing the work to educate and/or advance change so we can understand the continuing challenges and how we contribute in our own communities. For the month of February our programming will focus on issues of equity and equality for women and girls.

This week's Tea guests are experts from Equality Now, an organization "that uses the power of the law to dismantle deeply rooted discrimination and inequality and build a just world for women and girls." Equality Now works on a variety of issues impacting women and girls, including legal inequality, sex trafficking, sexual violence & other harmful practices. Kristan will be speaking with Equality Now's Antonia Kirkland, Global Lead, Legal Equality and Access to Justice, Tsitsi Matekaire, Global Lead, End Sex Trafficking, and Flavia Mwangovya, Global Lead, End Harmful Practices, (pictured above, left to right respectively.)

Due to time zone differences, this Tea will be prerecorded and will premiere on the Center's Facebook page at the regularly scheduled Tea Time. If you have questions during the Tea Time premiere, feel free to comment on the livestream and the Center staff will do their best to get the answers for you!

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. If you don't have a Facebook account, you can still watch the Teas on the Center's public Facebook page.

Our January 28th Tea featured Eva Paterson, President and Co-Founder of the Equal Justice Society. She and Kristan discussed the work of EJS to bring equality to all through the arts, advocacy, and education. Watch it on our YouTube channel here.

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

Coming Up at the Jackson Center

Thursday, February 11th & 25th at 3pm: Tea Time with the Jackson Center

Wednesday, February 17 at 7pm: Jackson Day: Excerpts from "Nuremberg" Our Annual Jackson Day in Warren County program commemorates Robert H. Jackson’s birth in Spring Creek, PA in February 1892. This year, in honor of the 75th anniversary of the Nuremberg Trials, we’re holding a virtual reading of excerpts from the play, “Nuremberg,” by Richard Norton-Taylor, performed by the Warren Shakespeare Club as an amateur production by arrangement with Nick Hern Books. Registration is required for this free program via Zoom. Click here to register. This event was made possible through the generosity of our donors and the Samuel F. Bonavita Lectureship Fund.

(L to R) Michael Baronich, RHJC Education Advisor, 2020 Teacher Fellows Ryan Barrett, Amy Thompson, and Bob Fenster, and RHJC President Kristan McMahon. On Screen: 2020 Teacher Fellow Anne Walker

Applications for our Teacher Fellow Week are Due Monday!

The Robert H. Jackson Center is accepting applications for its 2021 Teacher Fellow program. Educators will work with the Jackson Center Archives and local institutions to create meaningful and engaging educational experiences through the relevance of Justice Jackson’s body of work during an immersion week beginning July 19, 2021. Educators will be encouraged to empower and inspire students to discuss and reflect on the universal principles of equality, fairness, and justice.

To be accepted into the program, educators must demonstrate excellence in the classroom and participation in community and professional organizations, as well as knowledge of the importance of Justice Jackson and his contributions to issues of civil liberty.  Fellows are invited to the Jackson Center, or may utilize a virtual platform. Find out more about the program and application process here. Applications are due by Monday, February 15, 2021. 

Intern with the Jackson Center

The Robert H. Jackson Center offers internships for college and graduate students as an integral part of its mission. The Jackson Center is seeking applicants who have declared majors in a variety of fields, including Communications, History, Political Science, Community and Justice Studies, Education, English, German, Russian, Pre-Law, Journalism, Marketing, Art History, Library Science, Museum Studies, Business, Management, or other liberal arts majors. Law students are also encouraged to apply. All students currently enrolled in an accredited undergraduate or graduate school may apply, and students with a 3.00 G.P.A. or higher will be given priority.

Interns will work directly with their academic advisors and the staff of the Robert H. Jackson Center to determine their project. Projects will reflect the skills and interests of the intern and the needs of the Jackson Center – including research, web design, content creation for newsletters, blogs, webinars, podcasts, social media and the website, program development, videography, resource organization, and translation.

In the event that we are unable to host an on-site program, we are prepared to hold a virtual internship. The Robert H. Jackson Center does not provide housing. Previous interns have arranged for housing privately or through Jamestown Community College. We can facilitate those connections.

Program Highlights:

• A $1,000 stipend.
• Regular seminars with our academic advisor and the creation of a written project.
• Networking with leading experts, researchers, and educators through seminars and conferences, including practitioners of international humanitarian law, the leading Jackson biographer, and legal experts.
• Professional development activities, career mentoring, and social events.
• Community interaction – leading tours of the Jackson Center and participating in Center events.

Click here to find out more and to apply. Applications are due by Monday, March 15. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

From Jackson's Desk

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

Justice Jackson wrote a book review of Judge Arthur Gray Powell's I Can Go Home Again. The review was published in a 1944 edition of the Texas Law Review. In it, Justice Jackson pointed to the similarities of his and Powell's upbringing, and the overlooked importance of country lawyers' work in rural communities. 

"As I read Judge Powell's book, his early life in the heart of Rebel territory and mine in typical Yankee domain were so alike that it stirred a faint nostalgia-a homesickness such as the city-bred never will understand."

Read the entire address at our website here.

Pictured: A young Robert Jackson with his father William, mother Lina, and sister Ella.

This Month in Jackson History

February 13, 1892: Robert H. Jackson is born to William and Angelina Jackson on the Jackson homestead in Spring Creek, PA.

February 11, 1921: Mary Jackson is born in Jamestown, NY, to Robert and Irene Jackson.

February 26, 1936: Jackson is appointed as Assistant Attorney General of the Tax Division by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

February 1, 1949: Terminiello v. City of Chicago is argued before the United States Supreme Court. The case dealt with First Amendment issues. In a 5-to-4 decision, the Court held that the "breach of the peace" ordinance by the City of Chicago unconstitutionally infringed upon the freedom of speech. Justice Jackson dissented, writing, "The choice is not between order and liberty. It is between liberty with order and anarchy without either. There is danger that, if the Court does not temper its doctrinaire logic with a little practical wisdom, it will convert the constitutional Bill of Rights into a suicide pact." Read the full text of the decision and dissents here.

Enjoying our Programs, Events & Articles?

We hope so. You can help the Jackson Center keep these educational opportunities free to the public with a charitable gift to our 2021 Annual Fund. All gifts are welcome.

Click here and partner with us to bring more voices together in civil conversation. Your gifts help advance our vision of a global society where the universal principles of equality, fairness and justice prevail. Thank you.