Sonia Sotomayor Essay Example

An influential and selfless leader, Sonia Sotomayor once said, “success is its own reward, but failure is a great teacher too, and not to be feared.” U.S. Lawyer and Judge Sonia Sotomayor became the first Hispanic and third woman to serve on the Supreme Court. Although it seems as though her life was pretty ideal it wasn't always picture perfect. Sotomayor has a tremendous influence on equality because of her efforts to prove a woman can be a part of the government, expressing that everyone deserves an education, and explaining how without everyone having the same opportunities and rights we will never have an equal society.

When faced with the hard task to create equality Sonia's first battle was education, she believes everyone should have an equal education. In her past, she did not have all the opportunities that most people have today. She understands the struggle and strives to fight for what she believes in. “Until we get equality in education, we won't have an equal society” (Sonia Sotomayor). Our society is unequal because of people not having the same rights and opportunities. We all need to change if we want all people equal. We need to stop being bystanders and stand up for what's right so we can overcome this conflict of inequality.  “She earned a B.A. in 1976 from Princeton University, graduating summa cum laude and receiving the university’s highest academic honor” (Maurice A. Deane).  School is very important to Sonia. She wants everyone else in today's society to experience the same happiness as she had when having all these learning opportunities. Every step we take to make sure everyone has education is getting us closer and closer to an equal society. 

Sonia had many more battles throughout her life, but the most important one to her and society was proving that a woman can be a part of the government. Sexism is a big problem in the world, it always has been and always will be a problem in society forever. It makes no sense considering a woman can do whatever a man can and vise versa. An experience of a woman is better than a man with no experience. “Whether born from experience or inherent physiological cultural differences, our gender and national origins may and will make a difference in our judging” (Sonia Sotomayor). Different people have different opinions. If you have the same people with the same experiences judging you will have the same outcome of the case every time. The government needs more diversity in their judges.“I do believe every person has an equal opportunity to be a good and wise judge regardless of their background or life experiences” (Sonia Sotomayor). Everyone is different. Everyone deserves the same opportunities despite their past. What matters is the future and how you want it to look different from your background. Your past doesn't define you, everyone deserves the same opportunities no matter who you are.

As Sonia went on through her life, she realized that society will never be equal without everyone having the same opportunities and rights. If people aren't granted the same rights we will never all be equal humans. Equality is about ensuring that every individual has an equal opportunity to make the most of their lives and talents. It is also the belief that no one should have poorer life chances because of where they come from, what they believe, or whether they have a disability. “We educated, privileged lawyers, have a professional and moral duty to represent the underrepresented in our society, to ensure that justice exists for all, both legal and economic justice” (Sonia Sotomayor). Our goal is to make sure that everyone is shown with respect and enlightened with the same chances. By representing the underrepresented you are changing lives and making our economy more equal. It is Sonia's duty and vision to create equality worldwide. “I think it's important to move people beyond just dreaming but doing. They have to be able to see that you are just like them, and you made it” (Sonia Sotomayor).  We can all say we want an equal society where everyone is treated the same but we won't do anything about it. We all need to stand up for what's right and tell the government what we feel and the changes we want to make because if we don't we will continue to be governed unfairly. An equal society is very important especially for the stuff that is going on in the world today, for this to happen everyone needs to have equal rights.

Sonia Sotomayor is the woman who will go down in history for fighting the important battles of equality in education, rights in government, and equal society for all. Equality in education is a cause that will never stop becoming important but Sotomayor has made a big effort to do whatever she can to change as many lives as possible. Being the first Hispanic and Latina member of the Court Sonia's rights is very important. She knows that if history did not go the way it did she wouldn't have been in the spot she is now. Sonia dedicated her life to fighting for an equal society. Without her efforts to express this and making everyone aware of it our society would be a mess. Sonia's number of people whose lives have been affected is tremendous, either for their rights or equality. Her efforts to show that everyone deserves to be equal no matter their background is why she will go down in this nation's history for years to come.