The Life and Legacy of the Notorious RBG

The Life and Legacy of the Notorious RBG

By: Eve Odum

Staff Writer

By now you’ve heard that Ruth Bader Ginsburg of the U.S. Supreme Court passed away back in September. You may have seen videos of her pumping little weights, heard she could do 20 pushups or even sent one of the countless memes and gifs featuring her headshot.

But what many fail to realize is that this badass woman argued a case in front of the Supreme Court about gender that uprooted decades of discrimination. She is one of the sole reasons that women have as many rights as they do today. RBG famously quoted Sarah Grimke’s quote, “I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks.” This is what RBG sought to do.

At the time Ginsburg was becoming a lawyer, it was legal for American workplaces to fire a woman for being pregnant, banks required a husband to co-sign for a woman to get a credit card, and state-funded schools did not have to admit women. She helped to argue for equality, not only for women but for all people.

She grew up in an era where women were discouraged to become lawyers because people didn’t want to hire a female. She defied all odds by becoming the second woman on the U.S. Supreme Court; on which she served 27 years.

While on the court, RBG and Antonin Scalia, another Supreme Court justice, became best friends even though they had opposing views on the law. They even hung out outside of Court duties. Before holding a position on the highest court, she argued and won five out of six cases before the Supreme Court. She co-founded the Women’s Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The ACLU is a nonprofit organization that continues to fight for civil rights.

Early in life, her mother taught her to “be a lady and be independent.” In other words, don’t give in to negative emotions and be able to support yourself, both of which Ginsburg had gotten accustomed to. Even so, Ginsburg was immensely grateful for her husband, Martin Ginsburg, because of all the support he gave her. Not many men in the 50s willingly embrace their wife’s intelligence and career goals.

The legal status of women is the way it is because of her work in the 1970s. But there’s still more work to be done. Let her life be an example to us all that “Real change, enduring change happens one step at a time,” said Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

If you’d like to listen to the full story of how she, as a young lawyer, persuaded an all-male U.S. Supreme Court to acknowledge discrimination against women as a serious issue, listen to Radiolab’s podcast episode called “More Perfect: Sex Appeal.” You can find more information about the civil liberties issues the ACLU is battling at their website aclu.org.

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