This profile was originally published by The Miami Student.

In a groundbreaking year, you rallied, donated, wrote representatives, and voted to defend a democracy in which all voters can safely and fairly make their voices heard.

Here are a few highlights.

In June 2022, Ketanji Brown Jackson — the first Black woman to serve on the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) — was sworn in as an associate justice. Justice Jackson is the first former public defender to serve on the Court. 

In the more than two centuries of the Court, no justice has come to the bench with a public defender’s experience, representing those charged with crimes who could not afford an attorney. 

(COCHISE, ARIZ.) - The Board of Supervisors in Cochise County, Arizona, voted on Monday to delay certifying this year's midterm election results, a clear violation of state law. The action jeopardizes the votes of tens of thousands of Arizonans and undermines the integrity of our democratic system, according to an amicus brief filed Wednesday by the League of Women Voters of Arizona, ACLU of Arizona, Arizona Democracy Resource Center, and Arizona Center for Empowerment. The groups are represented by Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, and the law firms Latham & Watkins LLP and Spencer Fane in support of the plaintiffs in two cases, Hobbs v. Crosby et al., and Arizona Alliance of Retired Americans, Inc. et al. v. Crosby et al.