Latino organizations laud the confirmation of Myrna Pérez to Second Circuit Court, but press Senate and White House on relative scarcity of Hispanic appointees
Contact:
Chris Lechuga
915-274-2407
clechuga@rabengroup.com
Washington, DC —Latinos for a Fair Judiciary (LFJ) and its partners praised the U.S. Senate and the Biden Administration for returning a Latina judge to the United States Court of Appeals in the Second Circuit with today’s confirmation of esteemed civil rights lawyer Myrna Pérez.
However, given the 2020 Census results showing Latinos represented more than half of the nation’s growth in the last decade, Latino leaders urge senators and President Biden to further prioritize Latino nominees — as they have rightly done with other underrepresented groups. To that end, two additional recently announced Second Circuit vacancies, including Judge José Cabranes’ seat, present another opportunity to grow the bench of Latino jurists and further broaden the perspectives of one of the nation’s most influential appellate courts.
“We commend the appointment of Myrna Pérez to the U.S. Court of Appeals to the Second Circuit. With her confirmation, Ms. Pérez now becomes the second Latina to serve on the Second Circuit and is a worthy successor to Justice Sonia Sotomayor,” said Lourdes M. Rosado, President & General Counsel of LatinoJustice PRLDEF. “LatinoJustice has collaborated with Ms. Pérez on numerous matters around voting rights and believes her wealth of experience and high ethical standards are ideally suited for a position in the federal judiciary. While we celebrate her nomination, we also acknowledge that there is progress to be made to ensure more Latinos, especially women of color, are represented on our federal benches.”
In addition to her impressive legal resumé, Pérez is one of the most highly regarded voting rights attorneys in the country. Her expertise in election issues and equal justice will be vital as a federal judge at a time when Latinos and other communities of color are threatened by dangerous voter suppression efforts, gerrymandering, and civil rights assaults. Pérez’s sharp intellect, life experiences, and demonstrated commitment to protecting democracy are critically needed at this delicate moment in time.
“Congratulations to Judge-Designate Pérez on this important achievement and responsibility,” said Carlos Bollar, National President of the Hispanic National Bar Association. “The HNBA endorsed her nomination based on our extensive due diligence review of her record and qualifications. She is an exceptional lawyer that has demonstrated throughout her career that she has the experience, intellect, and temperament it takes to be an extraordinary judge of the U.S. appeals court.”
Appointing a Latino or Latina to fill Judge Cabranes’ vacant seat would help correct the historic racial and ethnic imbalances that have plagued not just the Second Circuit, but the U.S. judiciary as a whole. As of 2020, Latinos accounted for less than seven percent of federal judges, despite comprising more than 18 percent of the U.S. population. Worse yet, the window of opportunity for the Senate and White House to modernize federal courts to reflect current demographics is rapidly closing with the looming midterm elections. As of recently, Latinos ranked fourth among racial groups in Biden administration judicial nominations.
“Myrna Perez is wise, compassionate, and young; her service as circuit judge will benefit the Second Circuit states for decades to come,” said Thomas A. Saenz, MALDEF president and general counsel. “Recognizing that judges confirmed to the federal judiciary will serve for many years, we need more Latino appointees to reflect not only the prominence of the Latino community today, but how it will grow to be even more significant in the future.”
“We’re thankful and encouraged that the White House and Senate have expanded Latino representation on the Second Circuit and appointed someone with the diversity of lived and professional experiences of Ms. Pérez,” said Andrea Nill Sanchez, Director of Latinos for a Fair Judiciary. “But they aren’t moving quickly enough on Latino nominations, and there’s a lot of lost ground to recover before the midterms. Senators and President Biden must ramp up Latino appointments to advance equal representation and rebuild trust in our judiciary. The two additional Second Circuit seats that recently opened up present another opportunity to do just that.”
Learn more about Latinos and federal judicial nominations HERE.
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Latinos for a Fair Judiciary (LFJ) provides Latino leaders across the nation a platform and voice in matters related to our nation’s judicial system. LFJ is an unaffiliated, non-partisan, independent network of elected officials, legal, civil rights, labor, academic and political leaders who care deeply about the impact that the Supreme Court has on the Latino community. Our mission is to raise public awareness around the pressing legal issues Latinos are facing and call attention to the significance of the Supreme Court. For more information about LFJ, visit www.latinosforafairjudiciary.org.