Important People of the 2000s: Sonia Sotomayor

Sonia Sotomayor was born June 25, 1954 in Bronx, New York.  She was raised by Puerto Rican immigrants.  In 2009, she was appointed as an associate justice of the US Supreme Court, making her the first person of Hispanic descent to serve on the court.
Sotomayor decided at an early age to become a lawyer.  She graduated from Princeton University in 1976 and then attended Yale Law School.  She graduated in 1979 and spent 5 years working as an assistant district attorney in New York county before going into private practice, working on intellectual property and copyright cases.
In 1992, she was appointed a federal judge in the US District Court, Southern District of New York.  She was the judge responsible for ending the eight-month baseball strike in 1995.  She was later appointed to the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.  In May 2009, President Obama nominated Sotomayor to the Supreme Court.  She was confirmed in August 2009. 

Sotomayor, Sonia: 2009 portrait. [Photograph]. In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/126698/Sonia-Sotomayor-2009

Important Events of the 2000s: The Iraq War

The Iraq War, also known as the Second Persian Gulf War, was a conflict in Iraq that lasted from 2003-2011.  The first phase of the war lasted from March to April 2003, during which a combined force of troops from the US and Great Britain invaded Iraq and quickly defeated their forces.  This phase was followed by a longer one in which a US-led occupation of Iraq was opposed by an insurgency. 
The attacks on Iraq were the result of the 9/11 attacks and President George W. Bush's believe that Iraq possessed and manufactured weapons of mass destruction and that the country supported al-Qaeda.  The United Nations passed a resolution in 2002 that demanded that Iraq allow weapons inspectors into the country.  However, when it became clear that Iraq was not complying with the resolution, President Bush issued an ultimatum to the Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, that he leave the country within 48 hours.  When he refused to leave, US and allied forces launched an attack on March 20, 2003.  Less than a month later, the last major stronghold in Iraq fell and President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1.  Iraqi leaders fled into hiding.  Hussein was eventually captured by US forces on December 13, 2003. 
The Iraq War is considered controversial and the Bush administration was criticized for its alleged mishandling of the occupation of Iraq.  In addition, released photographs depicting abuse of prisoners of war in Baghdad damaged the world's opinion of the US. 

Iraq War: United States soldiers. [Photograph]. In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/94353/US-soldiers-in-Samarra-Iraq

Important Events of the 2000s: 9/11

On September 11, 2001, a series of airline hijackings and suicide attacks were committed by 19 militants associated with the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda against targets in the U.S.  These were the deadliest attacks on American soil in US history.  The attacks against New York City and Washington, DC caused much destruction.  In addition, 2750 people were killed in New York City, 184 at the Pentagon, and 40 in Pennsylvania.  All 19 of the terrorists died.  In addition, a large number of policemen and firemen were killed in the rescue efforts.
The 9/11 attacks were a response by Osama bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda, who believed that the US was weak.  The plot demonstrated that al-Qaeda was an organization with a global reach, as the planning for the attacks occurred in various places all over the world.
The 9/11 attacks caused overwhelming emotional distress across the US, but especially in New York City.  Economically, the world markets were shaken and the stock market was closed to trading for several days after the attacks to prevent a panic.  In 2002, President George W. Bush appointed a commission to look into the attacks.  The findings showed that the key failure prior to the attacks was the CIA missing two names of potential terrorists, which should have been added to the State Department's "Watch List".  In addition, it was found that the FBI had mishandled a case involving a French citizen who had received money from the 9/11 coordinators.

September 11 attacks: second plane approaching tower. [Photograph]. In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/70927/Hijacked-airliner-approaching-the-south-tower-of-the-World-Trade

Important Events of the 2000's: The Columbia Disaster

On February 1, 2003, the space shuttle Columbia broke apart over Texas, disintegrating on national television and scattering debris across Texas and Louisiana.  Seven astronauts were on board.  Columbia was the first space shuttle to go into space in 1981 at the beginning of the program.  This flight was its 28th mission. 
The disaster was determined to be caused by a launch-related issue.  Films showed that a piece of insulating foam broke loose from the external propellant tank and struck the leading edge of the left wing shortly after take-off.  While NASA engineers initially believed that the foam pieces would not be able to cause significant damage, post-accident results demonstrated that the foam could carry enough momentum to punch a large hole in the tiles that protect the shuttle from the extreme heat that develops during re-entry. 
As a result of the disaster, NASA grounded the three remaining shuttles until they could develop the means to prevent similar accidents and build repair kits that could be used while in orbit.  Assembly of the International Space Station was also suspended until shuttle flights could resume. 

“Columbia” disaster. [Photograph]. In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/68870/Streaks-of-burning-debris-from-the-US-space-shuttle-orbiter