Also read: Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court, civilrights, Ricci case, Latina
Gloria Bonilla-Santiago is professor of public policy and administration at the Camden campus of Rutgers,The State University of New Jersey, and founder and director of Rutgers' Center for Strategic Urban Community Leadership.
In the past few decades--and especially in the political arena--Latinas have experienced striking successes and have created the unprecedented opportunity for themselves to acquire social capital, assume positions of responsibility as role models for others and gain a competitive edge in the work force. As they ascend to positions of power, we have watched them grapple (and in Sonia Sotomayor's case, quite publicly) with the complex issues of race, class, gender and cultural background that continue to color everyday exchanges in the community and workplace--let alone a nationally televised nomination hearing for the U.S. Supreme Court.
To see examples of leadership commitment to diversity, read these relevant stories on DiversityIncBestPractices.com:
Candid Advice From CEOs on Diversity
8 Top 50 CEOs Tell Why Diversity Counts
Lessons Learned From the DiversityInc Top 50: Leadership & Values
To find companies that value Latino employees who bring their whole selves to work, read The 2009 DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for Latinos List. You can also peruse jobs from some of the companies on that list at DiversityInc.com's Career Center: Pepsi Bottling Group and Time Warner Cable.
As the Sotomayor hearings illustrate, Latinas bring a complex understanding of race and gender to the table along with a strong conviction in the need for responsive government. Although the GOP has made much of her decision in Ricci v. DeStefano--the now-famous case in which New Haven firefighters alleged racial discrimination in promotion proceedings, and her repeated clarification of the remarks she made in her "wise Latina woman" speech--Sotomayor's comments demonstrated her complex understanding of race as well as a firm grasp of the law. And the extent to which her opinions in her cases sprang from her perspective as a Latina, versus her penetrating intellect and strict interpretation of the law, remains to be seen.
Indeed, Sotomayor's public comments suggest that her views are more nuanced and original than her critics or supporters have allowed. It seems likely that her background, her deep understanding of race, gender and identity politics, and her firm belief in social justice will lend greatly to the Supreme Court's interpretation of these issues over the next few decades in ways that may surprise us all.
Whether the appointment of Sotomayor makes the path easier for Latinas who hope to follow her leadership example is, for now, an open question. The path ahead will depend to some extent on actions unique to her as an individual, let alone as a Latina--actions that are inherently unscripted, dynamic, spontaneous, adversarial, challenging and courageous. But whether that road is rocky or smooth, the appointment of Sotomayor to the Supreme Court--and the hearings that preceded it--should teach us all something about the fundamental inseparability of one's fiber as a human being from one's interpretation of the U.S. Constitution.
