Notorious RBG: 'The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg' at the Illinois Holocaust Museum

According to Jewish tradition, a person who dies on Rosh Hashanah is a person of great righteousness. That is certainly true of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died September 18, the start of the high holy days, said Susan Abrams, CEO of the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center.

"As an institution, we have been lucky enough to be telling her remarkable story for the last seven months, whether in person in our Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg exhibition or virtually," said VP of Education and Exhibitions, Kelley Szany. "She has become a friend to us."

Based on the New York Times bestselling book “Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg,” this first-ever museum exhibition focused solely on this judicial icon, continues through Jan. 3, 2021 at the Illinois Holocaust Museum. It explores her numerous, often simultaneous, roles as a student, wife, mother, lawyer, judge, U.S. Supreme Court justice, women’s rights pioneer, and internet phenomenon.

Briefs and other writings by RBG, including some of her famously searing dissents, are woven throughout the exhibit. In keeping with the spirit of Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik’s book, the exhibition riffs off the playful connection between Notorious RBG and rapper Notorious B.I.G. Both of them were born and bred in Brooklyn, as Ginsburg used to say.

This exhibition was developed in partnership with authors Carmon and Knizhnik by Cate Thurston, associate curator at Los Angeles Skirball Cultural Center.

Exhibition highlights include a robe and jabot from RBG’s Supreme Court wardrobe and home videos from her honeymoon and the early years of her marriage to Martin “Marty” Ginsburg. There are also 3D re-imaginations of key places in her life, including her childhood Brooklyn apartment, where visitors can flip through the Nancy Drew books she loved as a girl and get a feel for her Jewish upbringing, and the kitchen of the home she shared with Marty, featuring some of his favorite recipes and utensils. Visitors can visit the desk in her chambers, view the 2018-19 Supreme Court calendar and cases to be heard, then dress up in a robe and jabot.

An upcoming virtual event is a “Lunch & Learn” program at noon (CT) Thursday, October 29, regarding the book, “Sisters in Law: How Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Went to the Supreme Court and Changed the World.” The relationship between O’Connor and Ginsburg, the first and second women on the nation’s highest court, transcends party, religion, region and culture. Strengthened by each other’s presence, they transformed the Constitution and America itself. Linda R. Hirshman, author of the New York Times and Washington Post bestselling book, will share revealing stories of how these trailblazers fought battles in a male-dominated profession that ultimately benefited every American woman. The program is free to the public, but registration is required at: https://bit.ly/2FACAjs

For inspiration on how you can #BeLikeRBG, you can download a toolkit at the museum website: www.ilholocaustmuseum.org. The toolkit lists national and local advocacy organizations focused on women, from workplace fairness to voter education and the eradication of sex trafficking.

Located at 9603 Woods Drive, Skokie, the Illinois Holocaust Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Thursdays until 8 p.m. Masks are required.

Admission to the museum is $15 adults, $10 seniors over 65, $8 students age 12- 22, $6 age 5-11, but free on Wednesdays throughout 2020. The phone number is 847.967.4800.

-Suzanne Hanney