#SheWillRise: Activists, Black female attorneys helped change the face of SCOTUS

WASHINGTON (WPVI) -- A historic moment that took years of work from activists, including a group of Black female attorneys, helped keep pressure on in Washington D.C. to help get an African American woman to the nation's highest court.

"We felt truly in our spirits that the commitment that the president made was overdue," said co-founder Brandi Colander of #SheWillRise. "One that we all identified within our professional experiences. We needed to create accountability here."

Colander got to work with three other attorneys, helping form the campaign #SheWillRise, along with Sista SCOTUS-- a collective dedicated to achieving this goal.

The movement started as a campaign, then a petition. Now #SheWillRise is a judicial tracker to help other women throughout the judiciary get seated on a bench.

Colander sat in on the first two days of Judge Kentanji Brown Jackson's confirmation hearings and described her demeanor as nothing short of grace under fire.

"Fortitude period. If I had to use one word, it is absolute fortitude," said Colander. "You're hearing very triggering histories...very clear efforts to dissect race, but also put it right in front of you and see how you tackle it. What she was remarkable at doing was maintaining her composure."

Colander says their work has not only helped engage a new demographic that has traditionally been absent but also sends a message to other little girls, especially those of color, that this moment is attainable.