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Authors, sign in!The depth and breadth of my knowledge of the Supreme Court of the United States is paltry. I do tend to perk up and pay attention, however, to the cases that directly affect me or about which I have strong feelings, opinions and inclinations. As a feminist and equality advocate, these tend to be cases revolving around the areas of social justice, privacy and the female experience. These are the areas that I am passionate about. I read today that Sonia Sotomayor’s passion could be considered a detriment to her in the confirmation process.
This is the first time that I have ever pondered the concept that passion could be considered a negative characteristic.
The implication that passion somehow makes one unreasonable or inherently biased, causing an inability to judge impartially, I find this notion extremely sad and extremely harmful. I believe the status quo has always and will always attempt to extinguish passion. Passion is alive with possibility, which is why those seeking change have whole-heartedly embraced it. There is little doubt that it has been passion that has swung the pendulum toward equality and justice where precedence has failed.
Thurgood Marshall was passionate when he argued school desegregation in Brown V. BOE. In fact, he was chief counsel for the NAACP. Imagine the uproar such an association would cause with today’s GOP. He was the first African American to serve on the United States Supreme Court, breaking barriers much like Sonia Sotomayor is breaking with her potential confirmation as the first Latina woman.
As a firm believer in the power of passion, a believer in standing out and standing up and tackling inequality and unfairness head on when it is simply the right thing to do… I say bring on the passion Sonia! Bring on your experiences, your strengths and your weaknesses too. Be sure to pack all your chromosomes and please DON’T forget your sisters. We are counting on you.
Published July 16, 2009 by Kari Rinker |
Permalink
| Tags:
Feminism
Hispanic
Judicial Branch
Latino
Politics
Supreme Court
Women's Rights
Comments (1)
I agree! The life experiences of those that represent us, whether it be in the White House, Congress or on the Courts - matter. Diversity is a good thing. Having 9 unique perspectives on SCOTUS is something we should strive toward.
Posted by Nicki
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July 15, 2009 11:42 PM
Posted on July 15, 2009 23:42