The moment when ten-year-old Sonia Sotomayor decided that she would pursue a law degree is one of those small moments in time that would forever change the course of history (she was one of the Justices in favor of DACA). The little niñita from the Bronx went on to carve out a path of notable accomplishments that lead her to being nominated to the highest court in the land in 2009. Through hard work, determination and a huge dose of fuego Latino, Sonia became not only the first Latina, but the first person from the Latinx community to hold a position on the US Supreme Court (and that job is a permanent one). Below we’ve included six facts you should know about this intrepid Latina.
The first Latinx US Supreme Court Justice
She was nominated to the US Supreme Court in 2009 by then-President Barack Obama. She was nominated to replace Justice David Souter, who was retiring at the time.
Sonia Sotomayor is of Puerto Rican descent
She was born in the Bronx, New York, to Puerto Rican-born parents. He father passed away when she was only nine-years-old, and she was raised by her mother.
She has had a decorated career in law
She worked as an assistant district attorney for four-and-a-half years before going into private practice. Sonia was on the boards of directors for the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, the State of New York Mortgage Agency, and the New York City Campaign Finance Board. In 1991, then-President George H. W. Bush nominated her to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. In 1997, then-President Bill Clinton to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
She knew she wanted to become a lawyer at the age of ten
She had originally wanted to become a detective after being inspired by Nancy Drew, but after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, doctors suggested another path. She was then inspired by the Perry Mason TV series and decided to embark on a legal career that would eventually lead to her becoming a judge.
Sonia was a top-performing and accomplished student
Sonia finished grammar school top of her class (valedictorian to be exact) and had an almost perfect attendance. At her high school, she was on the forensics team and was elected to the school’s student government. She also graduated as a valedictorian. Sonia then went on to become a summa cum laude Princeton University grad, and got her Juris Doctor from Yale Law School.
She is a proud American and a proud Latina
Sonia often visits her parent’s native country of Puerto Rico to see family and do speaking engagements. She was once quoted, “Although I am an American, love my country and could achieve its opportunity of succeeding at anything I worked for, I also have a Latina soul and heart, with the magic that carries.”
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