The significance and importance of the guidon is that it represents the unit and its commanding officer. When the commander is in, his or her guidon is displayed for everyone to see. When the commander leaves for the day, the guidon is taken down.
A+E Networks. On this day in 1967, Thurgood Marshall becomes the first African American to be confirmed as a Supreme Court justice. He would remain on the Supreme Court for 24 years before retiring for health reasons, leaving a legacy of upholding the rights of the individual as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
By 1961, when President Kennedy named him to the Federal appeals court, Thurgood Marshall was the best known black lawyer in the United States. A group of Southern senators held up his confirmation for months, and he served initially under a special appointment made during a Congressional recess.