First Muslim woman confirmed as a federal judge

The U.S. will have its first Bangladeshi American and first Muslim female federal judge after the Senate confirmed Nusrat Choudhury on Thursday.

President Joe Biden nominated Choudhury, a civil rights attorney, to the U.S. District Court for Eastern New York in January, and she was confirmed to the life-tenured position with a narrow margin of 50-49 votes.

Most recently, Choudhury was the legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, and, according to her online bio, she has a track record of advancing criminal justice reform, immigrants' rights and access t reproductive care. She was previously the deputy director of the ACLU's Racial Justice program.