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One of the
most precious gifts given to us by our
Founding Fathers, reinforced by Chief
Justice John Marshall in 1803 in Marbury
v. Madison was an independent judiciary
to interpret and guard the Constitution.
An effective and respected judiciary is
one of the many things that set us apart
from the rest of the world.
Where else do you see heads of state,
governors, chief executive officers of
multinational companies and millionaire
celebrities being forced to respect the
rule of law and having to pay the
consequences of their actions? True, the
system is not perfect and has not always
worked, but compared to the rest of the
world, I believe our judicial system is
the best.
No one can deny the value of diversity
in all aspects of American life and its
great relevance as we compete in the
global economy. We are one nation, one
people, built out of many. It follows
then that an institution as important as
the Judiciary, an equal branch of our
government, should reflect the diversity
of America. Yet, despite our numbers,
our increasing integration into the
American mainstream and our growing
economic influence, the United States
Supreme Court lacks a Hispanic American.
Our Latino bar associations, local and
national, have worked hard for decades
to achieve the dream of a Latino or
Latina in the Supreme Court. I know
because I participated in those efforts.
The list of qualified Latinos and
Latinas—jurists and lawyers—is not short
and fortunately, continues growing.
Should there be a “Hispanic” seat in the
Court? No. Quotas and tokenism are 20th
Century; they have no place in this new
century. But in a country where the
largest minority group is Hispanic,
where an additional 12 million
undocumented immigrants are mostly
Hispanic, carrying on their shoulders
the heavy weight of much of our economy,
where families are separated because of
their national origin and language, a
new perspective, a new voice in the
Supreme Court is needed. What better new
perspective, what better new voice than
that of its largest minority group?
The challenges facing this nation are
daunting--from foreign policy and a
failing educational system to
immigration and the fast erosion of our
civil liberties. This country needs
someone in the Court who understands
what it is like to choose to be an
American and the pain, sacrifice, tears
and hard work which is worth that most
coveted citizenship; someone who speaks
another language and sees the world with
a cultural prism; someone who
understands why Latino children are
failing in schools and dropping out of
high school in record numbers; someone
who can convince others that we Latinos
are not foreigners--we are Americans.
The next president may well decide the
future of the Court for decades to come,
both in terms of racial and ethnic
composition and judicial philosophy. Six
of the nine justices are more than 68
years old. Justice John Paul Stevens,
88, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 75, could
retire soon. Whoever the next president
will be, the Hispanic community cannot
let this opportunity pass. Our vote must
be directly tied to our right to be
represented in the third branch of
government.
Within the “audacity of hoping”, I am
sure there must be plenty of room to
dare ask both presidential candidates
for a firm commitment to appointing a
Hispanic American to the Supreme Court.
The winds of change must blow high
enough to reach the highest court in the
land.
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Daniel's Blog
Daniel
Guadalupe's Bio
Daniel
R. Guadalupe is a co-founder of
PRIMER and a partner at the growing
regional law firm of Norris,
McLaughlin & Marcus, a 110-lawyer
commercial firm with offices in New
Jersey and New York City. He has
practiced law for 21 years and is a
graduate of Columbia College and the
University of Pennsylvania Law
School.
Dan represents
clients in commercial litigation
(business disputes) with a specialty
in construction law, professional
liability, arbitrations, will and
trust litigation and international
disputes. Dan is also a member of
the exclusive roster of
construction/commercial arbitrators
of the American Arbitration
Association. He also has served as
an International Chamber of Commerce
(ICC) Arbitrator, and as Adjunct
Seton Hall Law School Professor.
Dan was President of the Hispanic
Bar Association of NJ in 1991 (an
association of 1,000 Hispanic
lawyers), and the General Counsel of
the Hispanic National Bar
Association (a national association
of 5,000 Hispanic lawyers). He has
served as a member of the Selection
Committee which helped select two
federal Magistrates; member of the
prestigious Lawyers Advisory Group
to the Federal Courts of New Jersey;
member of the Board of Editors of
the legal publication New Jersey
Lawyer; been a legal commentator
on prime time, national television
for MSNBC during the 2000 election
coverage and a special legal
commentator for Channel 47,
Telemundo in New York City.
In ``2004, Dan was reported to be on
the "short list" for appointment as
an Associate Justice of the New
Jersey Supreme Court. In 2006 and
2007, Dan was recognized as a
“Superlawyer” in the Business
Litigation section of New Jersey
Super Lawyers 2006. New Jersey Super
Lawyers are selected based on a
peer-review survey mailed to more
than 35,000 attorneys throughout the
state, a blue-ribbon panel review
process and independent research on
each candidate. Only five percent of
New Jersey attorneys are given this
honor.
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