When we think of the Supreme Court of the United States, darkly robed individuals surrounded by a cloud of authority and stoicism often come to mind. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, however, has been actively chipping away at this image throughout her time on the bench.
Indeed, she is shattering preconceptions about the historically press-shy jurists through her various public appearances and efforts to connect with ordinary people. As she currently tours the country after the release of her memoir, My Beloved World, Justice Sotomayor and her book talks have drawn large crowds. Along the way, she has given hugs to little girls, salsa-danced with a Univision anchor, and captured the hearts and imaginations of many Americans.
In comparing Justice Sotomayor’s accessibility to that of her predecessors, we can easily come to the conclusion that her emphasis on reaching out to ordinary people is unlike anything that has been done before by members of the Court. While this may be in part due to her efforts to maintain a distinctively public presence, there is something about Sotomayor’s richly compelling life story that makes her categorically unique as a public figure.
After all, Sotomayor is unlike any other Supreme Court Justice in America’s history — as the first woman of color to sit on the bench, her very presence brings with it the distilled sense that one can still achieve great things without regard to the burdens and barriers of history. In her stories of self-administered insulin shots and mango-flavored summers as a child in the Bronx, we can see ourselves — the imperfect families, the immigrant narratives, and the drive to do something great.
In a time when our collective faith in the American dream is shaking, we can see ourselves in her story of success against all odds. Even more than that, it is her drive to keep this faith intact and inspire others through her story that has made her an undeniably unique Justice.