Chief Justice John Roberts has long attempted to portray the Supreme Court as sitting above the fray of Washington's partisan politics.

Yet in a speech delivered this past week, Justice Sonia Sotomayor seemed to quit any pretense of being nonpolitical when she took a veiled swipe at President Donald Trump.

Sotomayor calls her speech "an act of solidarity"

According to The New York Times, Sotomayor's remarks came as she spoke on Thursday at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of African American History and Culture.

"For me, being here with you is an act of solidarity," Sotomayor told those who came to hear her speak at the event which had been organized by the American Bar Association.

The justice went on to declare that "diversity is important for its own sake, because it inspires everyone to believe that it is possible for them to be in a position to help others."

Her words apparently came in response to a March executive order in which President Donald Trump alleged that the Smithsonian Institution has "come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology."

Museum exhibit tied "hard work" and "the nuclear family" to "whiteness"

The National Museum of African American History and Culture generated controversy in 2024 for its 2020 exhibit on "whiteness."

The National Museum of African American History & Culture wants to make you aware of certain signs of whiteness: Individualism, hard work, objectivity, the nuclear family, progress, respect for authority, delayed gratification, more. (via @RpwWilliams)https://t.co/k9X3u4Suas pic.twitter.com/gWYOeEh4vu

— Byron York (@ByronYork) July 15, 2020

The New York Post noted that the exhibit was publicized in a social media post by Byron York, who serves as the Washington Examiner's chief political correspondent.

"The National Museum of African American History & Culture wants to make you aware of certain signs of whiteness: Individualism, hard work, objectivity, the nuclear family, progress, respect for authority, delayed gratification, more," he wrote.

Justice Jackson accuses Trump of attacking "our democracy"

Sotomayor is not the only member of America's highest judicial body to take aim at President Trump in recent weeks, as Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.

The Associated Press reported that Jackson accused Trump and his allies of attempting to intimidate judges while speaking at a legal conference in Puerto Rico earlier this month.

"The attacks are not random. They seem designed to intimidate those of us who serve in this critical capacity," the justice was quoted as saying.

"The threats and harassment are attacks on our democracy, on our system of government. And they ultimately risk undermining our Constitution and the rule of law," she added.