October 9, 2020 | SantaFeNewMexican.com

The sadness of the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with her stalwart convictions defending the rights of people with disabilities to live in the community now must be channeled to the next chapter of this decade: the confirmation of a younger woman not from New York but the Midwest. She is one of the first non-Ivy league (i.e. Harvard, Yale, Columbia) candidates to be considered for the Supreme Court. Judge Amy Coney Barrett is a Notre Dame Law academic. She has notable credentials. Barrett is the first person nominated who has school-age children. She is also a mother of a son with Down syndrome.

The disability community knows that she will advocate for the aspirations and convictions of freedom. We know that she will apply the fundamental principles of the U.S. Constitution to uphold the rights of people with disabilities. As a mother, she is already beginning to personally understand and will experience the challenges of education and eventually employment for her son. She will be forced to help him as he marches through life faced with prejudice and patronizing attitudes. We know that these experiences will not only make her a stronger parent and advocate but an unflappable judge fighting for the rights of people with disabilities.

Robert Stack

president and CEO, Community Options Inc.

Santa Fe