Poised and Opinionated

Although considered liberal, she has a balance of opinions in the area of civil rights, both in favor and against the party claiming discrimination. Nonetheless, she applies the law how it should be, and upholds precedence in doing so (Henning 13). According to the ACLU, Judge Sotomayor applies real-world knowledge to her opinions addressing sex discrimination and the treatment of females (“Report of the ACLU…” 13). She has “recognized that race- and sex-based discrimination do not occur in separate vacuums, but rather reinforce one another to the detriment of women of color” (“Report of the ACLU” 13).

      In one case she clarified that “sexual harassment includes employer action that is based on sex, even if it has nothing to do with sexuality or sexual demands” (“Report of the ACLU” 14). In another case, she had to render a decision about strip-searching young girls, who were not criminals, at a detention center. She ruled that detainees need to be extra cautious when it comes to strip-searching young girls as they may have experienced abuse and are extremely susceptible to “psychological damage” (“Report of the ACLU” 17-18). From women’s and Latinos rights, raciest fire-fighters to religious freedoms, she has seen a lot of cases; most notably was her case ending the 1995 baseball strike which was said to “save baseball” (Stolberg 5). She is a true role model for all women, especially Hispanic women. She has pushed down the doors, all by herself, and proves she is an unstoppable force.


Figure 5: McNamee, Win. Photograph. Getty Images, 7 Aug. 2009. Web. 20 Oct. 2012. < http://blog.nj.com/njv_editorial_page/2009/08/a_supreme_victory_for_judge_so.html >.

Figure 6: Obama Chooses Sotomayor. Photograph. New York Times. By Matthew Cavanaugh. European Pressphoto Agency, 26 May 2009. Web. 20 Oct. 2012. < http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2009/05/26/us/20090526-SOTOMAYORPRESS_4.html >.