Thurgood Marshall’s jurisprudence, spanning nearly a quarter-century on the United States Supreme Court, did not merely culminate in the landmark decisions he helped shape; it also generated an enduring ripple effect that can still be observed in modern constitutional law. While many of the cases in which he participated offered decisive resolutions on issues such as civil rights, criminal procedure, affirmative action, reproductive freedom, and free speech, the full impact of these rulings often unfolded over the subsequent decades. In what can be termed “progeny cases,” later courts—sometimes the Supreme Court itself, sometimes lower federal or state courts—continued grappling with the core principles Marshall championed. These succeeding decisions took his foundational ideas, tested their limits, and sometimes reframed them against shifting social, political, and legal climates.
Chapter V delves into this underexamined but vital dimension of Marshall’s legacy by tracing how his key rulings influenced later jurisprudence. Whether it was the evolution of the death penalty debate, the ongoing challenges to affirmative action, or the perennial controversies surrounding reproductive rights, Marshall’s arguments—often found in separate concurrences or pointed dissents—served as intellectual scaffolding for new judicial interpretations. By examining how courts have cited, expanded, or in some cases narrowed his opinions, this chapter demonstrates how Marshall’s influence persisted well beyond the years he spent on the bench. Through these progeny cases, we see that his vision of a Constitution responsive to real-world inequities continues to resonate, ensuring that his judicial philosophy remains an active and evolving force in American law.