By Talia Reiss
When I was eleven years old, my sixth grade English teacher assigned a project that required me to write a resume from the perspective of any famous person. I chose Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and by the time I had finished my research, I was inspired. Four years later, I can say with conviction that Ruth Bader Ginsburg was one of my greatest inspirations.
RBG’s life story speaks to me for a variety of reasons, one being that I’m a lot like Ginsburg was: a Jewish woman, born and bred in New York, with a passion for justice. As the first female tenured professor at Columbia University and the first Jewish woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court, RBG shattered glass ceilings and opened the door for women like me.
More importantly, Ruth Bader Ginsburg's work as the Supreme Court justice changed my life. Her fierce legal advocacy on behalf of women revolutionized the United States’ approach to gender equality and provided women with many of the privileges we are able to take for granted today.
Before she was confirmed to the Supreme Court, Ginsburg implored the United States Supreme Court to reconsider the Idaho Supreme Court’s ruling that “men are better qualified to act as an administrator than are women” in situations where a child had died without a will. This case, Reed v. Reed, became the first ruling in Supreme Court history to deem state legislation unconstitutional for discriminating based on gender. Ginsburg’s contribution laid the foundation for future rulings that scrutinized sex discrimination far more carefully under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause.
Specifically, Ginsburg’s argument fueled the 1974 passing of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, which prohibited banks from denying women a credit card based on any factors other than creditworthiness. Prior to this point, banks turned away women, particularly married ones, who wanted a credit card or a loan under their own name. Ginsburg’s work on Reed v. Reed ensured that women had access to this pivotal tool in gaining financial independence.
In 1996, Justice Ginsburg wrote the majority opinion in United States v. Virginia, ruling that Virginia Military Institute’s refusal to admit women was unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause. This ruling was a major step in eliminating sex discrimination in the public school system and it guaranteed equal access to education, regardless of gender.
In 2007, Ginsburg dissented from the majority ruling in the landmark wage gap case Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber. Lilly Ledbetter, a supervisor at her local Goodyear Tire plant, sued her employers on the grounds that they had violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed discrimination on the basis of sex. When the majority-male Supreme Court ruled in favor of Goodyear Tire & Rubber on the precedent that Ledbetter had not filed her complaint within the 180 day timeframe, Ginsburg delivered a scathing dissent, criticizing her male colleagues for being “indifferent to the insidious way in which women can be victims of pay discrimination.” Her argument became the foundation for the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, which reversed the Court’s 2007 ruling and removed the 180-day requirement for filing claims of sex discrimination and pay.
The moment I read that Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died was my first real experience with heartbreak. My initial gut-wrenching, heart-shattering shock developed into an evening of numb grief, complete with messy tears and unfiltered Instagram posts that desperately urged people to vote. To me, a queer woman born onto a burning planet, Justice Ginsburg’s seat on the Supreme Court was a promise of progress and protection. Her absence terrifies me.
While the fear of losing rights like marriage equality and access to abortion are still legitimate, RBG’s legacy is one of hope and empowerment that has inspired movements that set us on the path towards real progress. The nation grieved when Ruth Bader Ginsburg died, but out of this communal grief came the togetherness and unity that has sustained my optimism during such massive political turmoil.
But Justice Ginsburg was not perfect, and it would be unfair to let my fierce admiration blind me from her deeply harmful impacts on many communities. However, she ruled with an unwavering idea of justice and impartiality that is unparalleled by many of the remaining justices.
In the aftermath of Ginsburg’s passing, there’s a lot you can do to live your life in her honor. Continue to educate yourself, not only by pursuing higher education, but by staying informed on current social and political issues. Don’t shy away from advocating for the change our world so desperately needs; RBG was a fierce proponent of women’s rights, and she would have wanted you to follow in her footsteps. Do your part to make life better for those around you, no matter how much or how little you are capable of contributing. And for the love of God, do not go within a 10-mile radius of your local Hobby Lobby.