In memory of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

In the words of the one and only Ruth Bader Ginsburg, "Women's rights are an essential part of the overall human rights agenda, trained on the equal dignity and ability to live in freedom all people should enjoy."

Ginsburg has worked her entire career to get rid of gender-based stereotyping in legislation and regulations. In 1993, she was appointed Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court by President William Clinton. She is the second woman to sit on the bench of the United States Supreme Court in its 212 year history. But her story does not begin here.

She was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1933.After graduating from Cornell University in 1954, Ginsburg attended both Harvard and Columbia Law School. She was one of nine women at Harvard Law School in 1956. Ginsburg and her female classmates were often questioned by the dean why they were occupying seats that would otherwise be filled with men. Despite the doubts people had about her, Ginsburg proved to be an outstanding student, making law review at Harvard in 1957. In Columbia, she finished top of her class. However, when she was recommended for a clerkship with Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter by Albert Sachs, a Harvard Law professor, Frankfurter stated that he wasn't ready to hire a woman. Ginsburg was later hired to clerk for Judge Edmund L. Palmieri of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York from the years 1959 to 1961. Throughout her time there, she received several offers from multiple law firms, but she chose to stay and work on Columbia Law School's International Procedure Project. Ginsburg joined the faculty of Rutgers Law School in 1963, but as a woman she was still at a disadvantage. When she discovered that her salary was lower than her male colleagues, she made the decision to join an equal pay campaign with other women teaching at the university. Due to her own experiences throughout her life, Ginsburg began to handle sex discrimination complaints pointed to her by the New Jersey partener of the American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU Women's Rights Project started in 1972 under Ginsburg's leadership, in order to remove these barriers and open more opportunities for women, everywhere. That same year, Ginsburg became the first woman to be granted tenure at Columbia Law School which was a major accomplishment.

Ruth spent a large portion of her life as an advocate for gender equality, women's rights, as well as a champion for LGBTQ+ rights. During her time at Columbia, she stood up for the rights of the school’s female maids, who were being laid off before the male janitors. She also fought on behalf of all her female employees to receive the same retirement benefits as men. She won, continuously. To go on, in 1972, she co-founded the Women’s Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union, as the organization began referring sex-discrimination cases to her. She took up the responsibility of looking over gender inequality cases. Little by little, she tackled one law at a time. Ginsburg truly kept the American promise of liberty and equality for all. Her legacy is particularly meaningful for the countless LGBTQ+ Americans whose lives she impacted. In every Supreme Court case that directly touched on queer issues Ginsburg joined and the majority ruled in favor of equality. She also co-founded the first ever law journal on women's rights. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was truly an icon and she will always be remembered. She wanted everyone to be treated equally and get the human rights they deserve. She fought for what she believed in until her last breath and was an inspiration to so many. She led an amazing life and I hope we continue to honor her and everything she fought so hard for.