On Sotomayor’s Appointment To The Supreme Court
May 27th, 2009
The above title is a growing question in reaction to Barack Obama’s nominee of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court on Tuesday. Sotomayor’s nomination to replace retiring judge Justice David Souter carries a historical importance. If she is confirmed, Sotomayor will be the first member of the Hispanic community to occupy a seat on the Supreme Court. She is also Barack Obama’s first nominee, perhaps setting a test for Obama’s approval in both houses and the trust he has earned thus far as a leader. Some say that Sotomayor’s nomination also aides President Obama in his campaign promise of passing immigration reform.
Barack Obama garnered large support from the Hispanic community during his presidental campaign, and still sees strong ratings from the base. Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination is reported to again boost Barack’s standing in the Hispanic community. California Rep. Xavier Becerra told Newsmax.com,
“The Latino community — and not just Latinos, but anyone who’s had a set of life experiences like Sotomayor — will always remember Barack Obama for this. This will inspire people who were hungry to see a reform of our broken immigration system to stand behind the president on this issue and behind the decisions he makes.”
Sotomayor’s story is inspirational in that it is the classic American tale, a ‘pick yourself up by the bootstraps’ success story in which we all hope to believe. Sotomayor’s parents moved to the the United States from Puerto Rico. Sotomayor was born and raised in the South Bronx by her mother, after her father passed away when Sotomayor was in the third grade. She lived in housing projects in NYC, and according to her wikipedia page, turned her aspirations towards law after watching Perry Mason episodes. Sotomayor excelled at school and attended Princeton as an undergrad before going on to Yale for her J.D. Accompanying her accomplishments is a world view shaped by her upbringing, and strong ties to the immigrant and Hispanic communities.
Ruben Diaz, the Bronx Borough President expressed his feelings to Univision. He said, “We’re happy and honored. This is a person who comes from our neighborhood, a daughter of the borough, who serves as an example for our children, especially for our girls. Her mother sacrificed a lot, gave a lot of her time to educate her daughter.”
Because Puerto Rico is part of the United States of America, those coming to the USA from PR are not considered to be immigrants. However, Sotomayor self-identified as such, and it played a role in her determination and achievements. The New York Times showed such feelings after Sotomayor’s nomination when they printed her 2001 speech at Cal-Berkeley’s School of Law. She said,
“Like many other immigrants to this great land, my parents came because of poverty and to attempt to find and secure a better life for themselves and the family that they hoped to have. They largely succeeded..;The story of that success is what made me and what makes me the Latina that I am. The Latina side of my identity was forged and closely nurtured by my family through our shared experiences and traditions.”
Sotomayor was a top choice throughout the nomination process, and she has been considered a supreme court candidate for several years. One fact about her that I find personally interesting is that she effectively ended the 1994 baseball strike by shutting down the league’s usage of replacement players.







