In 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Sonia Maria Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. Sotomayor would be the third woman ever to serve on the Supreme Court, the first Latina, and the only justice with Type I diabetes. Not only has she shown young Hispanic and Latina women that they can do anything they put their minds to, but she has created an essential legacy for the entire United States, as well as serving as an activist within the Type I diabetes community.
Sotomayor was born to parents who immigrated from Puerto Rico to New York City during World War II on June 25, 1954. After her father’s death when she was nine, she learned to speak English fluently. One year later, while watching an episode of “Perry Mason,” a fiery 1950s legal drama, Sonia Sotomayor decided she wanted to pursue a legal career.
She was a brilliant and gifted student, encouraged by her mother and her own determination. She graduated at the top of her high school class in 1972.
Don’t mistake politeness for lack of strength.
Sonia Sotomayor
Sotomayor was awarded a scholarship to Princeton University. While a student there, she joined a Puerto Rican activist group, Acción Puertorriqueña, and accused the University’s administration of being biased against Puerto Ricans in the hiring process. She graduated summa cum laude in 1976 and continued her education at Yale Law School.
She was hired by Robert Morgenthau as an assistant district attorney, where she quickly established herself as a tough but fair prosecutor. She was involved in many high-profile cases and made partner at a New York City law firm, Pavia & Harcourt, in 1988.
Sotomayor was nominated to the United States District Court by the Bush administration in 1991, where she is well-known for her strike-ending decision in Silverman v. Major League Baseball Player Relations Committee, Inc. Six years later, President Bill Clinton nominated her to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
During his first term, President Barack Obama nominated Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court, and the Senate confirmed her nomination on a 68-31 vote.
While this nomination and Justice Sotomayor’s career may seem unimportant to some, it is the exact opposite to the Latina and Hispanic communities, including me. Her outstanding achievements and her loyalty to her beliefs and herself have shown our community that with effort and determination, there is room for us, that we belong.
The Latina in me is an ember that blazes forever.
Sonia Sotomayor