Sotomayor Calls Out Kavanaugh Over Supreme Court Ruling Letting ICE Resume Racially Biased Raids

At a University of Kansas event, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor did not hold back in criticizing her colleague Brett Kavanaugh over the court’s controversial September 2025 decision that cleared the way for ICE to resume widespread immigration stops in Los Angeles. These stops, widely condemned as racial profiling against Latino communities, were allowed despite a lower court ruling requiring federal agents to have reasonable suspicion before questioning individuals about their immigration status.

Sotomayor, referencing Kavanaugh’s concurring opinion without naming him directly, called out his claim that these detentions were “only temporary stops” and dismissed the reality faced by hourly workers caught up in ICE raids. “Those hours that they took you away, nobody’s paying that person,” Sotomayor said. “And that makes a difference between a meal for him and his kids that night and maybe just cold supper.”

Kavanaugh’s opinion portrayed these encounters as “typically brief” with individuals “promptly go[ing] free,” a characterization Sotomayor’s remarks exposed as disconnected from the lived experiences of working-class immigrants. The decision came after the Trump administration expanded immigration enforcement beyond those with criminal records to anyone suspected of unauthorized presence, triggering widespread protests and fear in immigrant communities.

In her dissent, Sotomayor condemned the ruling as a dangerous erosion of constitutional freedoms, writing, “We should not have to live in a country where the Government can seize anyone who looks Latino, speaks Spanish, and appears to work a low wage job.” Her sharp rebuke underscores the Supreme Court’s role in enabling authoritarian immigration policies that disproportionately target vulnerable populations.

This clash between Sotomayor and Kavanaugh reflects deeper divisions on the court over immigration enforcement and civil rights. Sotomayor, the first Latina Supreme Court justice and a Bronx native from a working-class Puerto Rican family, brings a perspective rooted in lived experience and a commitment to protecting constitutional rights. Kavanaugh, a Yale-educated former Bush aide with a more conservative judicial outlook, sided with the administration’s expansive immigration crackdown.

The ruling and Sotomayor’s critique highlight how the Supreme Court continues to shape the Trump-era legacy of aggressive immigration enforcement and racial profiling. For immigrant communities and advocates fighting back, the stakes remain high as the court signals its willingness to uphold policies that undermine civil liberties and deepen systemic injustice.