Law Students

"A Latina Judge's Voice" & Embracing Bias

By jessie

Much has been made of Judge Sotomayor's pointing out that she views cases with a perspective that reflects her gender, ethnicity, and experiences. To an extent her critics seem to have hit on something that should bother us all: an admitted bias in a judge. But as I evaluate my own reaction to the nomination, I appreciate the candor with which Judge Sotomayor addressed her own bias. I guess I'll try and do the same:

A couple weeks ago, a friend was asking if I had any preference among The Short List candidates. For various political, personal, and professional reasons I was pulling a bit for Diane Wood. I wanted a consensus builder, a progressive who's stated views were in line with my own, and I'd just heard Judge Wood speak in Texas and was more than a little star-struck.

So you'd think I'd have been just the teeniest bit disappointed this morning, when the annoucement of Judge Sotomayor's nomination came across the airwaves. Instead I was literally dancing around my apartment in my PJs and too excited to type coherently. The differences between Judge Wood and Judge Sotomayor fall away when compared to the biggest difference between both of them and the justice they'd replace because they are women and he was not and neither were 108 of his predecessors.

I was excited because she was a woman. Simple as that.

read more

Full post as published by Ms. JD on May 27, 2009 (boomark / email).