By Annelise Reilman
Kid Scoop Media Correspondent, Age 12
Hello! I’m Annelise and I am in 7th grade. I had the good fortune of covering Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor for Kid Scoop Media. The event was in a huge, beautiful church which turned out to be the oldest Protestant church in LA. It made me proud because most of the people attending were women, many were proud latinas.
I received the call on the way home from Palm Springs. I had the opportunity to go to an event hosting Sonia Sotomayor. I had submitted a video saying my name, age, grade and school. But, I also had to submit some fun stuff too, like why I wanted to see her and some questions that I would ask her.
When I was chosen, I had to submit more questions that were more detailed. When my mom and I walked up to the event with Kid Scoop Media, we were so stunned.
The event had to do with a new children’s book Justice Sotomayor was releasing. Now, she has released several books, including an adult book called “My Beloved World” and the middle school version called “The Beloved World of Sonia Sotomayor.”
Her latest book, “Turning Pages,” is for elementary schoolers. They all contain her life story, the good and the bad. She talked about how the books are pretty similar just some more detailed and complex than others. In the children’s book, there can be multiple secret references to things that were important in her life, like a coqui. A coqui is a little frog native to Puerto Rico.
My favorite thing during the event was that she made a lot of funny jokes. She wasn’t afraid to share her troubles and difficulties with everybody. One of my favorite quotes from the evening was, “I once heard somebody say in reference to the cover of my book, ’a justice in heels and I replied a Latina Justice in heels.” She may be a justice, but she is so fun and energetic. She also said that if you didn’t know something you shouldn’t be afraid to ask questions. Asking questions was how she got her way through school. She is such an amazing person.
Very few people can be great without role models. Justice Sotomayor has had many heroes who helped her get through life. Her heroes were her mother and her grandmother, whom she endearingly called abuelita. They both worked very hard to support the family. It was especially hard for her mother after abuelita died because she had to handle Sonia’s diabetes alone. Justice Sotomayor said that most heroes are people that aren’t recognized, but still love and protect family and kindness.
I had the opportunity to submit questions and she answered one of my questions “Have you visited Puerto Rico, your hometown, since the hurricane?” She said that it was a great question and she would be going in January. The time after Hurricane Maria wasn’t the easiest time for her family.
In conclusion, I went to see Sonia Sotomayor the Supreme Court Justice because she was releasing her new children’s book. I went with a nonprofit called Kid Scoop Media as a member of the press. We went on a beautiful night and it was in a beautiful gothic church. It was a great experience!