March 5, 2003. Majority Leader BILL FRIST, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.    DEAR MAJORITY LEADER FRIST: We write you today on the nomination of Miguel Estrada to the D.C. Circuit of Appeals. We are all Latino/Hispanic/Chicano professors researching, writing, and teaching in colleges and universities throughout the country. We come from a world, not too dissimilar from the other worlds in our society, where not only are Latinos under represented in our rank of professors, but we are also under represented among the students and worse yet among the Presidents and Deans of our institutions. Nevertheless, we believe in studying old ideas, developing and exchanging new ideas, and training the next generation of thinkers to explore and improve the world around them, however they choose to do so.    We have followed with extreme interest the Senate's review and debate on the nomination of Mr. Estrada. For many in our broader society, they may be confused as to whether Mr. Estrada should be supported or not; however, we are not. We stand united in our opposition to the confirmation of Mr. Estrada to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.    We recognize and congratulate Mr. Estrada on his professional accomplishments. So few Hispanics have had the privileges that he has had to serve as a Supreme Court clerk, to serve in the Solicitor General's Office of the Department of Justice or to reach the level of partner at a major law firm in this country. At the end of the day, however, the question we ask is whether Mr. Estrada would be a fair judge? We conclude that he would not be.    He evaded questions from the Senate. That does not give us confidence that he would be a fair and open-minded judge if he feels he has to hide how he approaches the law. His past record, although limited, also provides some disturbing insight into how he would rule as a judge. We see that he would not be a supporter of affirmative action at the very colleges and universities where we teach where Latinos are sorely under represented and under served. A major problem facing Chicanos and other Hispanics is the issue of racial profiling; again, Mr. Estrada downplays its existence. We question whether he has a commitment to protecting civil rights of Latinos.    We want more representation from our community in the courts, but not at such a high price. We accept liberal and conservative thinkers among us, but Mr. Estrada is much more than a conservative, he is an ideologue. We cannot support the confirmation of the ideologue to such an important position in our society. The cost is too high. We urge you and the members of the Senate to oppose Mr. Estrada's confirmation.    Sincerely,