Thank you, Ruth Bader Ginsburg
I believe you could hear a collective gasp across the country when the news of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s passing hit the news on the evening of September 18, 2020.
Small in stature and truly mighty, the notorious RBG was “…a tireless and resolute champion of justice.” stated by her colleague, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts.
I was a child in the 1970’s when RBG began her historic legal fight for women’s rights later followed by 27 years of service in the Supreme Court of our nation. NPR’s Nina Totenburg covered the life and work of Ruth Bader Ginsburg for decades and wrote with poignancy, “…she changed the way the world is for American women.”
Let us not take for granted the revolution for women’s equality that RBG led that has changed our lives forever. RBG’s feminism was a role model for female influence and hope for an empowered future.
She became an exemplar for girls and women and was known as the Thurgood Marshall of the women’s rights movement. She devoted her life to advocate and fight for justice and she fought valiantly to overcome a myriad of health issues, finally succumbing to pancreatic cancer after a tenacious battle.
The news has been filled with a flurry of tributes to RBG and this paragraph from a NY Times piece by Linda Greenhouse brought tears to my eyes.
On June 14, 1993, when Judge Ginsburg stood with Mr. Clinton in the Rose Garden for the announcement of her Supreme Court nomination, she brought tears to the president’s eyes with a tribute to her mother. “I pray that I may be all that she would have been had she lived in an age when women could aspire and achieve, and daughters are cherished as much as sons.” – Ruth Bader Ginsburg
We should grieve and mourn the passing of this incredible woman, but we should also rally to keep her momentum going for the cause for which she worked so tirelessly – to make life better for people less fortunate. I challenge all of us to make our voices heard, get involved in causes that resonate, and honor the work of Ruth Bader Ginsburg by doing something outside of yourself.
2020 marks 100 years since women earned the right to vote and it was a hard-won fight, we must not take for granted. In solidarity with Ruth Bader Ginsburg – be seen and heard, dedicate time to help others – and VOTE!
I am deeply grateful for you, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and your words will ring forever true.
“Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.” – Ruth Bader Ginsburg
