Who Does Justice Look Like? Her changing features—and skin
color—over the centuries. Posted Friday, Jan. 21, 2011, at 5:27
AM Justice Antonin Scalia recently reminded us that when the
14th Amendment was drafted in the 19th century, it did not focus
on ensuring that women were entitled to equal protection of the
law. And yet women have long been used as the symbol of the
law—as the image of Justice, a figure dating back centuries and
deployed in many countries to mark a courthouse. That worldwide
tradition offered up hundreds of images of white women in
paintings, prints, and statues. Then, in the 20th century, as
real women of all colors gained access to courts, questions
emerged about which women could be the models for Justice. In
government-sponsored courtroom art, what skin tones could
artists use? What scenes could properly adorn new courthouse
walls?