The Mesquite Online News - Texas A&M University-San Antonio

OPINION: Supreme Court of Justice Sonia Sotomayor visits A&M-San Antonio, off-limits for student media

OPINION: Supreme Court of Justice Sonia Sotomayor visits A&M-San Antonio, off-limits for student media - The Mesquite Online News - Texas A&M University-San Antonio

A "Welcome Sonia Sotomayor" graphic is displayed inside the auditorium where the U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor spoke at the private Distingushed Lecture Series event on Jan. 29, 2025. Photo by Teresa Talerico

Texas A&M University-San Antonio welcomed United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Jan. 29 with a standing ovation as she walked onto the stage of the auditorium. 

Security was seen walking and surveilling campus moments before Sotomayor’s arrival. Sotomayor was invited to be an honorary guest for the Cisneros Institute’s Distinguished Lecture Series. A very unusual sight for students as they commute between classes. 

The event was announced through a mass email sent out to faculty, staff and students with access to a university email and other special guests. The email emphasized the limited amount of seats because it was a private event. Only those who secured a ticket through the lottery ticket system would have access. 

Ticket winners lined up at the entrance of the auditorium and made their way through security before choosing a seat. Ticket winners included university faculty, staff, students and San Antonio city officials such as Mayor Ron Nirenberg, Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran and Dr. Adriana Rocha Garcia, former Mayor Henry Cisneros, Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai, Commissioner Rebecca Clay-Flores and more. 

Sotomayor took the stage with a loud roar of applause from the standing audience. She thanked everyone for attending after the moderator of the event introduced her. 

Sotomayor answered a series of questions that were submitted at the time the students placed an entry for a ticket. 

The questions were about Sotomayor’s journey with discrimination, stereotyping and breaking the glass ceiling as a first generation Latina woman with a dream of becoming a judge. She spoke about making friends while she attended Princeton University and her struggle with assignments — translating them from Spanish to English in her head before writing them down. 

A total of eight questions were answered, each having a long and thoughtful response full of experience and wisdom from Sotomayor. Although the questions were strictly from students, faculty and staff overshadowed students filling the seats of the auditorium. 

Some of the many words of advice that were meaningful, especially to college students, was to always plan everything you do but to be prepared to make changes. She suggested creating a plan by setting goals, figuring out what skills we need to achieve said goal and taking it one step at a time. This way, we will eventually take enough steps to eventually look back and see how far we have gone. 

Sotomayor left the stage after the second question and walked into the audience to shake hands. She also took photos and exchanged hugs with the students whose questions were being prompted as she poured her life experience to everyone. 

Because the event was private, video, photography and student media were prohibited. However, A&M-San Antonio’s personnel were able to capture heartwarming and memorable moments that made part of the history on our campus.

Two months before the event, A&M-San Antonio tried to grant media access to the student-led newspaper The Mesquite. After weeks of back-and-forth communication, Sotomayor’s agency rejected the media proposal entirely, except for someone writing an opinion piece from the perspective of a student attending the event.

 

 

The Mesquite editors joined forces to write an email to Sotomayor in hopes to convey the importance of covering a groundbreaking event that will make an impact on the Southside community and the students who were not able to attend the event.

 

           

 

Attached to the email was a story about a recognized public figure that The Mesquite had covered, along with various examples of media outlets from other institutions covering her events and a highlighted example of another university student newspaper who were able to attend and write an article about a private event taking place on their campus. The email closed with a respectful request to be given the same opportunity as other student journalists. 

After the university’s final attempt to speak a Supreme Court representative, the request was rejected by the Supreme Court. They emphasized that the event should remain private and if a student journalist selected attended the event, they would attend in the capacity of a student and not a journalist. 

 

About the Author

Saile Aranda
Assistant Editor
Saile Aranda is a communications senior at Texas A&M University-San Antonio. She enjoys going to museums and reading in her free time. Saile loves photography and hopes to travel around the world with her camera. Saile looks forward to pursuing a career in production and journalism after graduating.

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