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Posts tagged with 'racial equality'
Sotomayor
Could Senator Schumer have drooled more? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QzZkl-Uwx4 Is he aware that there are other nations without caste systems? He seems to feel that USA is the only one. His introduction of Judge Sotomayor is overly dramatic and shows that his mind is already made up. What is the point of hearings if Senators have already decided their vote? He is so enamored of her that he cannot be open minded in the hearing process.
What is it about a person’s background that somehow becomes an extra job qualification? If is unlawful to disqualify a person for a position based on his background, than surely it cannot be lawful to give a person extra ‘credit’ for being of mixed background. The message being sent to young white people across the country is, “Don’t even think about seeking high positions in your life. If you were born to middle class parents, and your ancestors only include Americans and Western Europeans, you’re out of luck. You’re not interesting enough.” It seems mixed background isn’t even enough. Only certain backgrounds are compelling. Being an Irish American won’t get you anywhere.
Certainly, Sotomayor’s story is great one. Struggling with money and a language barrier growing up undoubtedly made her strong. Rising to the top of her class in school clearly shows hard work and determination. But the implication here is that a white, middle class person, couldn’t have worked as hard or couldn’t be as strong. That is very dangerous territory.
In my own school experience, I was not allowed to wear red and green or say Merry Christmas. But minority students were encouraged to wear their holiday-specific attire and inform us about Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and other celebrations. Students of certain backgrounds were encouraged to share their family traditions at a culture festival during a Diversity Week. Students of Irish, Italian, or British background were not given stage time.
Just as it is not Michael Phelps’ fault that NBC’s coverage of him left other great athletes ignored (and made many Olympics viewers sick of hearing about him) it is not Judge Sotomayor’s fault that Sen. Schumer and her other fawning fans are praising her background way more than her work history. Perhaps in the next few days the media can do its job and pull some facts out of the cloud of emotions and hype. Maybe we can all see what really matters: the content of her character, not the color of her skin (thank you, MLK http://www.usconstitution.net/dream.html).
