Supreme Court Reflection

    

The Supreme Court of the United States is the most
powerful court in the world

When I first learned about the U.S. Supreme Court, I was struck by how much power is concentrated in the hands of just nine people. It’s often called the most powerful judicial body in the world, yet I think its influence is surprisingly quiet. Unlike a president or Congress, the Court doesn’t win support through speeches or campaigns. Instead, I feel its authority comes from something less visible: the public’s belief that its decisions are legitimate.

Alþingi, one of the oldest Parlament
in the world

    As someone from Iceland, this feels both familiar and foreign. Iceland’s parliament, the Alþingi, founded in 930 AD, is one of the oldest in the world, so I understand the weight of history in shaping a nation’s identity. But while the Alþingi feels closer to the people, I think the U.S. Supreme Court feels more distant. Its job is to interpret a constitution written more than 200 years ago, and I often wonder what it means to apply words from that time to modern problems. I feel there’s something both impressive and unsettling about relying on such an old document to govern a society that looks nothing like the one that wrote it.

    The Court’s history with slavery shows me just how powerful its decisions can be. In the Dred Scott v. Sandford case of 1857, the Court ruled that African Americans could not be citizens. When I read about this, I felt shocked that such a decision was ever possible—and it made me realize how the Court’s interpretations can deny or grant rights to entire groups of people. I think this case is a reminder that the Supreme Court is not just interpreting laws, but actively shaping the course of a nation.

The nine current Supreme Justices
(2025)

    I also feel uneasy about how little influence the public has in choosing the justices. Over 100 people have served on the Court, and each has had the power to draw the boundaries of government authority. I think their independence is important—it protects them from short-term politics—but it also makes me wonder whether decisions that affect millions should be left in the hands of people the public never directly chose.

    In the end, I feel this contrast highlights how differently countries approach democracy and trust. In Iceland, politics feels smaller and more accessible. In the U.S., I think people put incredible faith in a very small group of justices to safeguard their most important values. Seeing this from the outside makes me reflect on a bigger question: how much power should any society give to so few individuals—and what does it mean when that power rests mostly on trust?