I want a Wise Latina on the Court

I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life,” said Judge Sotomayor,

I want a Wise Latina on the Court

Justice is not blind, but it does see through a set of lens in the USA. If you are poor, disadvantaged, poor black or poor Latino, a shanty-town white Appalachian your experience with the law will be very different than if you are a rich white person and in the rare case a wealth black football player. The evidence is in the prisons overwhelmingly filled with Black, Latino, and poor whites. Occasionally, a wealth white guy will serve hard time… at one of those golf club prisons, but except in cases of extreme stupidity or greed, white rich guys get a free pass. As a white working class man I want a justice system that represents the diversity of Americans. Nevertheless, I don’t believe ethnicity or class gives you the sole advantage of perspective, but in the case of Judge Sotomayor, who through dint of integrity, intelligence, and hard work brought herself up from the hardscrabble childhood of the Bronx. This vantage point of a highly qualified wise Latina jurist is sorely needed on our Supreme court.
White wealthy Republican senators on the judicial committee are apoplectic that the subject of race is mentioned. From their ill informed perspective -- justice is blind, everyone is treated equally under the law, and though we wish that were true, the reality is to the contrary. White people, myself included, do not like being confronted on their racism, collectively or personally, and when the subject comes up we want to say, “But my best friends are…” or retreat into clichés of fictitious fraternity. Despite an African American president, the US is still a racist/ classist society, both by history and present reality. Though there’s been great strides, we are a society defined by this racism, and to not recognize it – is myopic at best, at worst it perpetuates the racism.
Though the selection of Justice Sotomayor will not instantly mitigate the racism or bias, the unique perspective of a jurist with the depth of her experience, knowledge, and the wisdom of a well qualified Latina jurist will well serve the Supreme court.