California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno was the lone dissenting voice in the Prop 8 ruling this week. Judge Sonia Sotomayor is our next nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court.
In a celebration of recent Hispanic achievements, however, let’s not forget Sheriff Lupe Valdez of Dallas, Texas. New (and very promising) Web site The Stimulist hasn’t, and reminds us that she was the first female, first person of color, first lesbian, and first Democrat elected to the job. Site founder and MSNBC anchor Carlos Watson talks with Valdez in an inspirational video. Make sure to listen to the end, where Valdez talks about the importance of having and being allies.
On a tangential note, Watson offers his thoughts in another post on “How the Prop 8 Ruling Will Help Gay Marriage.” It fits well with the collection of posts I pointed out yesterday that take a positive look at Tuesday’s ruling. Watson writes:
In my mind, it’s not that different from Plessy v. Ferguson’s tragic “separate but equal” ruling that confronted my great-grandfather and millions of other African-Americans looking for simple equality in the late 1890s.
But despite this backward decision, I am optimistic—and it’s not because I’m writing for the Optimist’s Daily Brief. I believe the ruling will hasten national acceptance of gay marriage.