New York, USA (CU) _ The US Senate has appointed the 46-year-old Indian-American civil rights lawyer Vanita Gupta as Associate Attorney General, which made her the first person of color to hold the third-highest position at the Department of Justice. Democrats managed to muster the necessary support to ensure that historic Gupta could get through in the Senate on Wednesday. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska broke ranks with her Republican colleagues to support Gupta, giving the Democrats the required 51 votes to complete the historic confirmation process.
Vanita Gupta, the daughter of Indian immigrants who grew up in the Philadelphia area, has a long history of fighting for civil rights. Gupta was confirmed by the Senate with a 51-49 vote. In the event of a tie, Vice President Kamala Harris showed up in the Senate to vote. In the 100-seat United States Senate, each party has 50 members.
President Joe Biden congratulated Vanita Gupta on her historic victory. He said, “Congratulations to Vanita Gupta on making history as the first woman of color to serve as associate attorney general. Now, I urge the Senate to confirm Kristen Clarke. Both are eminently qualified, highly respected lawyers who are dedicated to advancing racial equity and justice”.
Gupta graduated from Yale University with a Bachelor of Arts degree, and New York University awarded her the Juris Doctorate. She began her career at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund at the age of 28, and reversed 38 false drug convictions in Tulia, Texas. She campaigned to end mass confinement of immigrants while at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and won a milestone settlement in support of immigrant children against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), ending family detention at the facility.
Gupta was President Barack Obama’s assistant attorney general for civil rights from 2014 to 2017, during which time she advanced criminal justice reform, prosecuted hate crimes, secured voting rights, and battled discrimination. Vanita Gupta is the daughter of Indian immigrants who arrived in the United States with nothing but a dream and eight dollars. She has now established herself as one of the country’s leading civil rights activists, and as associate attorney general, she will carry out the highest principles of justice. Gupta was congratulated on her landmark victory by many Indian-American organizations.
