First Latina, Openly Gay Woman On Colorado Supreme Court

Monica Marquez became the first Latina, and openly gay, member of the Colorado Supreme Court Saturday. She’s super smart, educated at Yale and Stanford, and her father, retired Colorado Supreme Court Judge José D.L. Marquez, swore his daughter in. Marquez is 41, in a relationship and her father became the first Latino appointed to the Colorado Court of Appeals.

I think this is a huge step because Colorado always seems to be on the precipice between crazy anti-Latino politicos like Tom Tancredo and very pro-Latino ones like Ken Salazar. The fact that Marquez will be on the Supreme Court is a big deal for Latinos in that state because, as issues like Prop. 8 in California have shown, these types of courts wield a lot of power and affect many people.

Having a Latina lesbian on the Supreme Court could, at least hopefully, inform important decisions in Colorado that would not only affect Latinos in that state now, but for years to come. Congrats to Marquez and we look forward to watching her career and future.