Sotomayor Sparks Storm With “Wise Latina” Comment

Sonia Sotomayor made history in 2009 after she became the first Latina to be seated on the U.S. Supreme Court. But the Puerto Rican judge almost missed out on the chance to go down in the record books when a quote from a speech she’d made years earlier resulted in conservatives such as Newt Gingrich calling her a “racist,” and Republican lawmakers flirted with the idea of blocking her nomination to the high court.

The allegations came because Sotomayor said during a 2001 speech 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.” Sotomayor was basically saying that people from underrepresented backgrounds have insight into certain situations that whites don’t. But her words were largely taken out of context and twisted around to suggest that she believed that Latinas were wiser than whites. That’s not what she intended, a conclusion Congress members arrived at as well given that they ultimately supported her nomination to the Supreme Court.

Eric Holder Misquoted

Sotomayor’s words from years earlier were taken out of context during her Supreme Court nomination process, but U.S. Attorney Gen. Eric Holder was outright misquoted to support the theory that he’s anti-white. In 2009, Holder remarked that the United States was a “nation of cowards” when it comes to discussing race. A year later, his words were mangled by Iowa Congressman Steve King who wrongly stated in 2009 that Holder said, “It looks like Eric Holder said that white people in America are cowards when it comes to race.” King seemingly made this statement to frame Holder as a reverse racist, but the attorney general never singled out whites in this manner.

Al Sharpton Described as Race Hustler

Many conservatives have branded civil rights activists such as the Rev. Al Shaprton a “race hustler” and a “reverse racist.” However, Sharpton told the Los Angeles Times in February 2012 that he simply believes, “America ought to work for everybody, it ought to be fair, it ought to be equal.” Sharpton has shown that he advocates for a variety of different people by marching on behalf of undocumented immigrants and speaking out in favor of gay marriage, which indicates that he’s not solely concerned about advancing the interests of black America. Moreover, Sharpton has reached out to famous conservatives to raise awareness about social issues as well—from Fox News personality Bill O’Reilly to former speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. Given the diverse causes Sharpton has embraced and the people he’s teamed up, it’s unfair to characterize Sharpton as a reverse racist.