Nits to Pick
Posted on | May 29, 2009 | 2 Comments
Juxtaposition
When the newspaper of record makes this kind of editorial mistake, the argument that use of the Internet is lowering standards gains credence.
Racist?
In an article on SFGate, Carolyn Lochhead, Chronicle Washington Bureau wrote:
In a speech, Sotomayor was taking issue with then-Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s dictum that a wise old man and a wise old woman would reach the same conclusion in a case.
“I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life,” she said.
I think the comment was racist. And sexist. I do not think Judge Sotomayor is a racist, or that she is sexist. And I compare her position on race to that of Mr. Limbaugh and Mr. Gingrich. Ms. Sotomayor’s actions have consistently been directed at improving the lot of the poor, while Mr. Limbaugh and Mr. Gingrich give comfort, if not direct support to oppressors and bigots. But a racist comment is still a racist comment.
As a white male, I know there are things that Judge Sotomayor knows from experience that I do not. But there are better, more nuanced ways to say it.
Walk well. God is love.
Comments
2 Responses to “Nits to Pick”
May 29th, 2009 @ 2:57 pm
I think the “richness of experience” she talks about is the fact that members of a minority group are by necessity bi-knowledgeable, i.e. they know their own culture but also know the dominant/majority culture in order to get along in it. That’s the truth I see in her statement.
The racism I see is the tacit assumption by so many of her critics that the perspective of the white males heretofore in power is a default, and neutral, and some kind of yardstick of pure reason. Whiteness gets to be blind to itself.
I enjoyed this post on Judge Sotomeyor’s actual rulings on cases involving race:
http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/judge-sotomayor-and-race/
It really made it evident how lazy the reporting has been, all about “what she is” rather than “how she rules.”
May 29th, 2009 @ 3:16 pm
I was hoping for some responses and expected one of the first would be from Portland. You are right, of course. And I wish Judge Sotomayor had stated the matter as well as you.
Judge Sotomayor does invite the blurring of the lines between what she is and how she rules by comments such as those she made in Berkeley. However, there have been no allegations that I have seen that her judicial decisions have been race-inspired.
Now the question of the law. If the law is an abstract, as suggested by Justice O’Connor’s statement, then a special perspective would not be of value. In fact, would have no effect one way or the other. But that is not what Judge Sotomayor said.
I hesitated to write my comment. And after three or four attempts, decided to post the message. Part of my hesitation was the company it put me in. Newt Gingrich and Rush Limbaugh forsooth.