The Drive to be a Latina Lawyer

Recently there has been some notice given to the fact that there’s not much diversity in the legal field. The Atlantic recently discussed how the Law is the least diverse profession in the U.S. Additionally, Cynthia Mares, HNBA President, wrote an excellent piece on Latinos’ representation in the law. This lack of Latino representation has serious, negative consequences because when people in power make decisions through litigation, legislation, or policy-making without understanding (or caring) about the experiences, needs, and rights of Latinos the results can end up being extremely unfavorable for us.

An example of a major issue I see coming down the pike is the possible demise of Affirmative Action. And while Justice Sotomayor has been a great advocate on this issue that so positively affects Latinos (and has made no secret of what AA did for her); she is just one Justice and without more Latinos in power we are left with a status quo that will make decisions that affect us without caring about how it affects us.

This is just one example of why we need Latinos in the law, and why one of Latinas Uprising’s goals is to help increase Latina representation in the law. Not just to have more attorneys, but to encourage Latina attorneys to seek out those positions of power. I believe one way to do this is to share what motivates us to be attorneys so that others who are not yet where we are can pull from similar sources of motivation.

What gave us—or is giving us—the drive to push back against statistics that say we can’t, and instead say, si se puede.

For me, being an attorney is a vocation and a calling. However, when I was younger, I made it my goal to become a lawyer simply because I knew being a lawyer would mean that I would be improving my station in life. I felt that if I were to become this kind of professional, I would be able to have a steady income and a stable life. That may seem like a myopic view of what being an attorney can mean, but when you’re living in poverty, like I often was, then a steady income and a stable life is a huge goal. Further, when I would read anti-immigrant stories (living in the Mid-West that happened a lot), or when I was confronted with bigoted statements against my ethnicity’s intelligence and worth (by classmates and teachers), I realized that it would be a huge political action to join the most powerful of professions. I know many other Latinas are fueled by the same motivation: a drive to succeed in life and to also support and empower our communities. By pushing back against these hateful stereotypes, we are declaring that we are as worthy as everyone else, and that our communities, and our families, deserve to be represented within the law.

So let’s keep this motivation going–what called you to be an attorney? What allowed you to ignore the bias (both overt and unconscious) that said you couldn’t do it? What helps you keep going?