The Senate side of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. | Photo: Wikipedia/Scrumshus
President Donald Trump’s first openly LGBTI pick for the judiciary had a ‘breezy’ hearing to confirm her nomination.
In her first hearing, Judge Mary Rowland enjoyed bipartisan support from the Senate Judiciary Committee as Trump’s nominee to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Rowland has served as a federal magistrate judge in Illinois for six years. Prior to this she spent 12 years in private practice and 10 years in the Chicago federal defenders office, The Washington Blade reported.
The bipartisan support for Rowland is something of a rarity for the current administration, where presidential nominations have often been polarising.
Annise Parker, CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Institute, voiced her support of Rowland’s nomination while drawing attention to president’s past nominees, many of whom have chequered histories with regards to LGBTI rights.
‘Mary Rowland is well-respected by the LGBTQ community in Illinois and we are pleased that someone with her experience and integrity was nominated,’ Parker said
‘Judge Rowland is President Trump’s first openly LGBTQ judicial nominee out of the approximately 140 he’s put forward – depriving the bench of talented LGBTQ justices in favor of judges with strong anti-LGBTQ records. Mary is a bright exception to this unfortunate pattern – and we are proud to support her,’ Parker said.
High praise
During the hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Rowland was praised for her legal background and her work within the LGBTI community.
Two senators from Rowland’s home-state of Illinois – Richard Durbin, who is a member of the committee, and Tammy Duckworth, who introduced Rowland – offered particularly high praise of the judge.
Duckworth said Rowland’s ‘reputation in the legal community is impeccable’ and those who know or had worked with her ‘commend her good temperament, intelligence, and fairness.’
Duckworth also drew attention to Rowland’s work with the LGBTI legal community, such as being a member of the Lesbian & Gay Bar Association of Chicago and conducting pro bono work for Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund.
Rowland and her wife, Julie Justicz, have two adult children together.
First LGBTI judicial nomination
President Trump picked Rowland for a seat as a district judge in June.
So far, she is the only LGBTI choice from some 140 fellow judicial nominations made by the current administration.
In comparison, during the presidency of Barak Obama, the number of LGBTI judges skyrocketed.
Obama presided over the nomination of 11 LGBTI judges, and is often credited with having the most diverse selections of judicial nominations in US history.
