With the passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia on Saturday, people across America are struggling to define the legacy Scalia leaves behind.
To help in this decision-making process, and to maybe dispel a bit of the saintly image being portrayed from the GOP, here is a simple list of some of the things for which Scalia should be remembered:
- Scalia in 2015 argued that black students are less intelligent than white students, and are less able to succeed in higher level universities. Scalia said that it was cruel to expect black children to perform above their alleged potential.
- Scalia unilaterally opposed same-sex marriage, being one of the few dissidents in the history-making ruling on marriage equality.
- Before marriage equality was achieved, Scalia ruled that homosexual life partners should not receive similar benefits to heterosexual married couples in receiving life insurance payments.
- Scalia ruled that the death penalty is constitutional and that the court shouldn’t be wasting their time worrying about whether the method of execution is excessively painful.
- Scalia also argued, most controversially, that the constitution does not make allowances for a man who is innocent but has been found guilty by the proper process. “Mere factual innocence is no reason not to carry out a death sentence properly reached.”
- Scalia believed and argued that the Constitution does not have any provisions which would require states to allow abortion.
There are many more of decisions like these in Justice Scalia’s near 30 years as a Supreme Court Justice. For better or for worse, Scalia has had a massive impact on the United States during his tenure, and leaves behind a sizable legacy imprinted on the fabric of the nation.
