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13 Berkeley La Raza L.J. 33 (2002)
The Time for Latino/a Empowerment Is Now

handle is hein.journals/berklarlj13 and id is 39 raw text is: The Time for Latino/a Empowerment is Now Hon. Patricio M. Sernaf I want to thank the Berkeley La Raza Law Journal and the Berkeley La Raza Law Students Association, together with the Center for Latino Policy Research, the Boalt Hall Center for Social Justice, and the Boalt Hall School of Law for presenting this symposium Raising the Bar - Latino/a Presence in the Judiciary and the Struggle for Representation. I am honored to be on this panel entitled Breaking the Barrier: Latino/a Pioneers in the Federal and State Benches. I am humbled to appear with such notables as California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno; Honorable Cruz Reynoso, former California Supreme Court Justice and now U.C. Davis law school professor; Honorable Frances Mufioz, Orange County Superior Court Judge; and Dean Kevin Johnson, U.C. Davis School of Law. Special thanks to Victor Rodriguez, Symposium Editor of the Berkeley La Raza Law Journal, who was the major force behind this first national conference for Latino judges. The organizers of this symposium are making history today. As the only Latino Chief Justice in our nation, I feel a special need to be a role model for our people, especially to our youth, and to carry the message of empowerment wherever I go. Now, through me, we have a voice in the Conference of Chief Justices and believe me, it is a resounding voice. From 1990 to 2000 our nation's Latino population swelled to 35.3 million - a 60% jump. The rest of the U.S. population increased by 13%. This dramatic increase in our numbers translates to one word - empowerment. Empowerment in all aspects of our lives - political, economic, educational, and, yes, empowerment in the judiciary. I am pleased, indeed, inspired here this morning, as I look out among you. I see so clearly in your eyes the light of enthusiasm, courage, self-confidence, commitment, accomplishment, deep faith, character, and loyalty. The light I see in your eyes reflects a vision that will surely continue to empower people of color. Many of you came from poor families. I too came from a very poor family, a family of eight. My mother passed away when I was not quite two years old. My youngest sister was but seven months and my oldest sister was fifteen. My father, a laborer with a third grade education, raised six girls and two boys, and never remarried. My father taught us family togetherness, family love, and family support. To me, family is the most important thing in our lives and in our culture. My last thought in this world will be of family, and I know that your last thought will be of family also. We, the panelists, are pioneers on the federal and state benches and have broken the barrier. But I'm happy to report that many others are now also breaking the barrier. This is only right because the time for empowerment has arrived. The great majority of us, including me, are the first generation in our family to attend law school. t Chief Justice, New Mexico Supreme Court. Chief Justice Serna obtained his J.D. from the University of Denver College of Law and his L.L.M. degree from Harvard Law School. He spent four years in Washington, D.C. working with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Upon returning to Santa Fe in 1975, he was Assistant Attorney General of New Mexico until 1979, when he entered private practice. Justice Serna served as a District Judge from 1985 to 1996, including a two-year term as Chief Judge. He was then elected as justice of the New Mexico Supreme Court. In 2001, he became the nation's only Latino Chief Justice.

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