"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."
statement byJustice Sonya Sotomayor
So...what's the problem? SHE'S RIGHT! Give me a break!
Is what Sotomayor said racist? Or sexist? Or bigoted? Or just plain dumb? Nope, in my humble opinion. Dig this: does an institutional racism already persist in which a white male metric is seen as the gold standard for EVERYTHING? Be it as Supreme Court justices, captains of industry, intellects, creators of art, literature, and architecture? As scientists, critical thinkers, politicians, culture warriors, "thinking-man" athletes..I could go on and on. (By the way Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas doesn't count. Not because he's "lost his blackness," but because he's lost his mind.)
How did white male-ness become the "default" position? Is it because our founding fathers more than 200 years ago had no founding mothers or founding fathers of color, that people who look the most like our founding fathers were considered the norm, and the rest of us are "the other?" Even more than 200 years later, as the colors of this country continue to change
Yes. I think wise Latina, a wise black woman, a wise Pacific Islander, a wise Native American, a wise gay or lesbian, a wise handicapped person would, more often than not, because of the richness of their experiences, make better decisions than a white male. (Okay, maybe I'd say "different" instead of "better;" and maybe it would depend on the particular person of diversity and the particular white man. But only maybe.) When I went from a multi-cultural public high school in New York City to a way-smaller, predominantly white college in Ohio, I was suddenly confronted by white students who had never met a black person before and asked me the strangest questions: where were the good drugs on campus, what was it like to grow up in the ghetto, and why was my hair so soft. I remember thinking: how is it that I know all about white people and their lives, and they knew nothing about mine? We've been force-fed this idea of all things Caucasian as the way things were supposed to be. It depressed me at first but now I see it as a secret weapon. We can understand both sides and they can't. I can't wait till we have a Supreme Court that truly reflects this diverse country.
3 comments:
Of course white males should have the same rights as everyone else. So, like everyone else, they should not feel entitled to 100% of all the good jobs and leadership positions.
Good point.
I have gained a lot of experience with human nature. I think the problem is that a lot of white males, specifically the ones making the most noise about this, know what they have done over the course of their lives and believe that retribution for all those wrongs is coming in the form of this nominee. In their minds they frighten themselves thinking of all the things they would do if they were in her place to get even for what they done. That quote was nothing more than a confirmation in their minds that she would get even for all that they have done.
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