Sotomayor Hearings

Here at Fresh87.com, we cover a wide range of topics, so I wanted to actually be serious for a moment. This is yet another historic moment in this country's history as Sotomayor prepares to be confirmed into the Supreme Court. This is certainly a step in the right direction for inclusion of all races into the framework of the government and high powered positions overall--an ongoing battle nonetheless. However, during these hearings, as expected, she has been bombarded with questions about her "wise Latina" line she made during a speech to the UC Berkeley School of Law in 2001. She is on record as saying, "[A] Wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not (my emphasis) reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life and those life experiences." She was essentially saying that her identity as a Latina woman in some cases would give her a more unique perspective on specific issues on the law. However, this perspective does not overrule the law, but instead offers a different lens in which to view a specific case through. She has since backtracked from the comments in this speech. That opens up another issue that I find quite problematic. Simply put, everyone, in one way or another is influenced by their background and how they grew up. Here the word background is loosely defined as race, gender, socio-economic status. Those experiences comprise who we all are as people. Some people share similar experiences, while others do not. Instead of acting as if people make decisions solely based on the ever elusive word of "objectivity," we should all embrace and celebrate our individual stories and experiences. Press play and please comment.