September 18, 2020 marked the death of one of the most inspirational women that the world has known, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG).
Background RBG graduated from Cornell University with a Bachelor of Arts in Government in 1954. She married shortly afterwards to Martin D. Ginsburg. When the couple relocated, RBG worked for Social Security America. When RBG was pregnant with her first child, she was demoted. Later, she attended Harvard Law School graduate, as one of nine women in her class of over 500 men. However, she transferred to Columbia Law School to follow Martin’s career in New York City. After graduating near the top of her class, she had difficulty finding a job because of her gender. RBG was a research associate at Columbia University. While in these roles, she was inspired by Sweden’s system where there were more female law students (20-25%), and a female judge who was eight months pregnant was still working! This has been said to inspire her to make changes on American soil. She accepted her first professor role at Rutgers University School of Law where RBG was underpaid in comparison to her male counterparts. At this point in time, all of the US had fewer than 25 female professors. She was appointed to sit on the Supreme Court in 1993, making her the second female to obtain that position. Contributions to Society She was an advocate for gender equality and women’s rights. In 1970, she co-founded Women’s Rights Law Reporter which was the first law journal to focus solely on women’s rights. Her approach to gender equality was to adopt the view where equal means same, and not a special accommodation for either gender. At court, her compelling arguments have fuelled changes in society. This article only touches upon a few examples of her stance and the role she played. She began with Reed v Reed, a case challenging the principles of probate court which required men to be the administrator of estates even if there were qualified women to conduct the task. Her brief persuaded the court to unanimously strike down the law. She also stood up for men who faced gender discrimination, in her only Supreme Court loss, Kahn v Shevin. In 1974, Kahn was seeking a property tax exemption that was only available for widows. In 1976, RBG wrote an institutional brief in Craig v Boren to evaluate the constitutionality of sex-based laws. This was with regards to an Oklahoma law that allowed women to purchase alcohol at the age of 18, but men had to be 21 to purchase the same drinks. The stereotype was that men drive, women are usually passengers. The public policy rationale in this situation was unreasonable. In 2007, she was in the dissent for Gonzales v Cahart against her male colleagues on abortions in the second trimester. She pointed out that being a woman does not mean you necessarily would like to be a mother, and those are “ancient notions.” In recent years, she explained the institution of marriage in 2015 with regards to the changes in gay marriage laws. She noted that the state had gender norms, for men to be the breadwinners and women to engage in childrearing. The LGBT2QS+ community’s marriages break these gender roles, hence it was more difficult to get the state on board for this change. Conclusion We pay respects to the woman who has made these significant changes to the function of society, changes that we take for granted. It goes to show that the law is a powerful tool, understanding it and fighting for what you believe in goes a long way. To do justice to her memory, it is incumbent upon us to carry the torch. By: Karen Randhawa Comments are closed.
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