Judge's statement was racist

Dear Senator McCaskill: A vote is imminent on the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court. Your press release indicates you intend to support that nomination.

I ask you to consider the definition of racism. In the American Heritage Dictionary, racism is defined as "the belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior to others."

Judge Sotomayor's well-publicized and repeated statements that she believes a wise Latina judge with the breadth of her experiences will be able to come to better decisions than a white male are, by definition, racist.

I ask you to honestly answer that you would continue to support a white male conservative judge that made a similar statement about his ability to come to better decisions than a Latina. Obviously, you wouldn't. So why would you support and vote for the confirmation of a judge that made such racist statements? Only a level of hypocrisy would allow you to do so.

It is a national shame that our president has chosen to nominate such a person. Please support the continued blindness of justice to ensure the fair application of our nation's laws.

ARCHIE GRIFFIN, Jackson