"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."
Believe it or not, that line was part of a much longer speech. The full text of Judge Sonia Sotomayor's controversial speech can be found here, via the New York Times: Lecture: "A Latina Judge's Voice". Too bad that little attention has been given by the media to the speech, but that instead they have focused only on a single isolated line from it.
Please read the full text to see that this quote, while perhaps overstated, is given at the end of a long speech describing the positive impact that a diverse judiciary has on cases affecting minority groups. In this speech Judge Sotomayor points out that the presence of cultural minorities and women on the bench (and in the legal profession in general) has resulted in greater justice for women and minorities … ie, "better conclusions" (to use her words), better rulings for minorities than have been historically handed down by courts comprised exclusively of white males.
Read the whole speech, and judge for yourself.
Peace.
The Lutheran Zephyr 