Ruth Bader Ginsburg. (Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
After a career fighting for women’s rights and practicing as the second woman to sit on the U.S. Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away in her home in Washington, D.C. Friday due to complications from metastatic cancer of the pancreas.
Ginsburg, who was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York by two Jewish immigrants, was one of nine women out of a class of 500 to be accepted into Harvard Law School in 1956. After graduating top of her class, no law firm hired her. In 1971, Ginsburg argued in front of the Supreme Court for Reed vs. Reed, making history for the first time the Supreme Court ruled in favor of gender discrimination. The following year, she became the first tenured female professor at Columbia Law School.
After serving in the United States Court of Appeals starting in 1980, President Bill Clinton nominated Ginsburg for the position of Supreme Court Justice in 1993.
Throughout her career, she was recognized as a feminist who argued for both sides of gender discrimination. She inspired lasting social change throughout the nation. Ginsburg was a display of perseverance and strength, demonstrating her dedication to her career sitting on the bench on the final day of term in 2010 the day after her husband’s death.
Following Ginsburg’s death, people gathered outside the Supreme Court building Friday night to mourn. Senator Bernie Sanders began publicly expressing his concern on Instagram for Senator Mitch McConnell’s desire to fill the Supreme Court’s now vacant position before the November presidential election. In a national opinion poll conducted following Ginsburg’s death, 62% of American adults said the position should be filled following the election.
When it comes time to vote this November, keep in mind that your vote goes to the late justice. Remember what she fought for, and keep fighting.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Zoe Schacht at zoe.schacht@colorado.edu.
