Sotomayor expected to bring disability perspective to high court
August 7th, 2009
By David G. Savage and James Oliphant in the Los Angeles Times:
The historic confirmation Thursday of Judge Sonia Sotomayor as the nation’s newest justice will bring new perspectives to the Supreme Court, and not just because she will be its first Latino.
… Her diabetes and daily insulin shots it requires were not much discussed during the hearings, but that experience is bound to influence her views, some lawyers say.
“She may be a strong voice for access to healthcare,” said Sylvia Lazos, a law professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. “She will be a real player in the debates over what is a disability.”
Advocates for those with disabilities have suffered some big defeats in the court in the last decade, and they have high hopes for Sotomayor. “We’re very excited. We don’t feel we have had a champion on the current court,” said Andrew Imparato, president of the American Assn. of People with Disabilities.
Earlier posts here.
(AP photo)
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September 9th, 2009 at 2:31 pm
I was very disappointed that the media focused almost exclusively on her heritage and largely ignored the long needed disability perspective she will bring to the Supreme Court.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:19 am
My son who was born with Down syndrome and developed type one diabetes when he was 7 would be surprised to hear himself described as disabled, too. Disability does not define who he is.
Insulin dependent diabetes is a very big deal, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Understanding the discipline and dedication with which Judge Sotomayor manages it effectively and quietly is very impressive.
Many states in the USA limit Medicaid coverage of blood testing supplies to manage costs even though diabetes emergencies, treatment of complications, and disabilities related to unchecked blood sugar are very expensive to treat, and a terrible price to pay for individuals and their families.
Diabetes is among the top ten most interesting things about Judge Sotomayor in our household, and I am thrilled that she will sit on the Supreme Court of the USA.
August 8th, 2009 at 7:30 pm
P.S. I didn’t mention that my daughter pokes her finger to check her blood sugar up to 13 times per day. Yes, 13 times. Research has shown that if one keeps blood sugar in the normal range (80-110) one might be able to avoid some of the horrible complications of high blood sugar: blindness, limb amputation, kidney disease.
Type 1 (and some type 2) diabetics must inject insulin daily to live. My daughter now uses an insulin pump, which is attached to her body by a narrow tube that is inserted below the skin with a big needle (really big). She moves it every 2-3 days to avoid sores. She tests her blood sugar, calculates how much insulin she needs, and clicks the pump to inject the insulin. NOT EASY.
This is all the time, 7 days a week, forever until there’s a cure. Make no mistake – it’s a disability!
I’m a mom, and so hot about this;>) Thanks for listening.
August 8th, 2009 at 7:24 pm
Hi,
Not sure what your objection is to seeing diabetes as a disability. Perhaps you don’t really understand what it is.
There are 2 kinds of diabetes: type 1, the autoimmune disease in which one’s body destroys all the islet cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, which you need to survive. Type 2, the most common type (90% have this) is a metabolic disease in which the body produces insulin but it doesn’t work as well. Type 1, which is what Justice Sotomayor and my daughter have, in most cases, is far more difficult to live with than type 2.
My daughter has type 1, and we’ve had to fight with teachers and others who don’t understand that if she can’t eat when her blood sugar is low she could become unconscious. If she gets too high she can have convulsions and die. Many teachers and other school personnel don’t understand and refuse to allow kids to check their blood sugar or don’t let them eat in classes, libraries, tests, etc.
It is a HUGE struggle to get society to understand this disease, which I can assure you, can be a disability. We have spent a lot of time working with other families to raise awareness about type 1 and to protect our kids. Families often don’t know their kids can be protected by 504 plans at school.
Thanks for posing the question so I could vent. It’s a BIG BIG deal to have type 1, and it can be a big big drag! My daughter, now 25, stood up and cheered at work when she heard Sotomayor was nominated. I had tears in my eyes when Sotomayor was confirmed today.
The wonderful Special Olympics is not a litmus for disability.
With much good cheer (yay, Sonia!),
Lyra Halprin
August 7th, 2009 at 9:50 am
I know diabetes is no laughing matter, but since when was it considered disabled? I don’t think diabetes qualifies you for Special Olympics for instance.
I’m sure that Sotomayor would be surprised to hear herself described as disabled.