Black Bloggers Express Pride in Obama's Nomination of First Latino Supreme Court Justice

Charles Hamilton Houston’s view that African-American attorneys should be social engineers has cast a long shadow. Houston’s statement about the importance of black attorneys to American society had a direct impact on his students and colleagues such as Thurgood Marshall. Marshall famously said of Houston and his influence on the civil rights movement, “we wouldn’t have been any place if Charlie hadn’t laid the groundwork for it.” AllAcademic.Com

Soon-to-be justice Sonia Sotomayor follows in the footsteps of Charles Hamilton Houston, as she says in the video above. Republicans say they oppose the use of law as social engineering, but these are the same white supremacists who supported laws preventing Blacks and whites from marrying one another. Republicans are avid social engineers when its suits their color-aroused prejudices.

I am so proud of President Barack Obama today for nominating "U.S. appeals court Judge Sonia Sotomayor of New York to replace retiring Justice David Souter on the U.S. Supreme Court." WaPost I first read about it at Yahoo News, and I think this is the kind of moment that I will always remember, where I was and what I was doing when President Barack Obama nominated the first Latino for the US Supreme Court.

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama named federal appeals judge Sonia Sotomayor as the nation's first Hispanic Supreme Court justice on Tuesday, praising her as "an inspiring woman" with both the intellect and compassion to interpret the Constitution wisely.

Obama said Sotomayor has more experience as a judge than any current member of the high court had when nominated, adding she has earned the "respect of colleagues on the bench," the admiration of lawyers who appear in her court and "the adoration of her clerks."

"My heart today is bursting with gratitude," Sotomayor said from the White House podium moments after being introduced by Obama.

I feel like President Obama has read my blog and quoted me when I read in Yahoo News what he said in announcing this appointment:

Obama and Sotomayor both noted the historic nature of the appointment. The president said a Hispanic on the court would mark another step toward the goal of "equal justice under law."

Obama and Sotomayor stood with Vice President Joe Biden. It was a striking picture of diversity: a black president, a white vice president and a Hispanic nominee to the nation's highest court.

Sotomayor said she grew up in poor surroundings and never dreamed she would one day be nominated for the highest court. Yahoo News

Now, to the politics of this decision: There is absolutely nothing the Republicans can say about this nomination that will help them politically, except "congratulations!" If they oppose this nomination they will enrage, infuriate and alienate the Latino vote for generations.

As Tanehisi Coates said in the Atlantic this morning, and as was quoted approvingly by Jack and Jill Politics,

Obama is tactical as always--I just don't think [color aroused US Senator (my riff)] Jeff Sessions, with his history, really wants it with a Puerto-Rican woman who worked her way up from the projects and went on to be summa cum laude at Princeton, and went on to Yale Law. Not to mention you have the first Latina Supreme Court judge, appointed by the first black president. Just on the crass politics, it ain't a good look.

As for Black people, I think we have a unity of interests with Latinos in terms of decisions made by the US Supreme Court, because we need the same things: an end to color-aroused police brutality and electrocution; an opportunity to go to schooo, universities and work, even though our skin is brown in America; juries that are not stacked against us by their very all-whiteness . . . and police who do not target us simply because our skin is brown.

That's why President Obama was speaking directly to me and my needs as a Black American today, when he used the phrase, "equal justice under the law." I think we all know that the goal of equal justice under the law is among the foremost concerns, if not the single most unanimous concern, of the AfroSpear and the afrosphere.

"My heart today is bursting with gratitude," Sotomayor said from the White House podium moments after being introduced by Obama.

Justice Sonia, my heart is bursting with gratitude as well.

White reporters will be calling Black bloggers and other highly public figures and they will be asking us if we are not disappointed that Obama did not choose a Black person. The answer is as follows: We are all Americans and Federal Appeals Court Judge Sonia Sotomayo is one of us. I congratulate President Obama for this appointment, which will cement his place in American history as a courageous visionary who brings the "change" of which he speaks and who fulfills the promises of our nation. President Obama nominated a woman who understands the needs of people like me, and who will also understand the immigrant experience, even if she personally was born in Puerto Rico, within the United States of America.

I could not be more proud of President Obama than I am right now. I am relieved that there will now be at least one justice on the US Supreme Court whose background and and votes reflect personal experience with being among the minority in the United States. But we must also remember that, as a woman, Sotomayor is among the largest single demographic group in America, and in a country with a better history of equality it would not be surprising that the majority of the citizenry be among the majority of the nation's highest court.

Now, the Republican white supremacist misogynistic immigrant haters - "the party of 'no' ", will crank up their noise machine, as they have in their new anti-Justice Sonia website and say abominable things that will alienate Latinos, women and Blacks.

Senate Republicans, led by then-Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.), blocked her nomination by Bill Clinton to the Second Circuit for an entire year, arguing — presciently — that she was being tapped in preparation for a SCOTUS appointment.

Sens. Robert Bennett (R-Utah), Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Judd Gregg (R-NH), Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) joined a unanimous slate of Dems in pushing Sotomayor through by a 68 to 28 margin. American Future Fund, citing Politico.com

This nomination, from every perspective, is a fatal wrench in the Republican noise machine. We, all of us, --Latinos, women, Blacks and white men of good conscience, Asians and Native Americans -- will never, ever forget what the Republicans say and do right now.