Alright, I know I am not the only one who is experiencing major depression post-RBG right now… right? On September 18th, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg – also known as the notorious RB – passed away. Ginsburg was a phenomenal role model for young women all over the country. She was an avid advocate for gender equality and gave hope to young women with worries regarding their reproductive rights. Thanks to RBG, women have more rights today than she did when she was starting her career. RBG founded the ACLU Women’s Rights Project and argued a number of gender discrimination cases. We must never let her legend die.
My friends and I mourned her death Saturday night. We watched On the Basis of Sex (10/10 recommend) and ate sushi. What better way to mourn? A hush fell over the room when the movie ended. So many young women are worried about what will happen to their reproductive rights; I know I am. We are worried about what will happen to our access to birth control and other contraceptives as well as the autonomy of our own bodies. My friends are talking about getting IUDs and what they may do if our rights are reduced. This saddens me seeing my friends so scared.
With an open seat on the Supreme Court it is crucial we make our voices heard. President Donald Trump and a number of senators are making efforts to fill her seat. Let’s not forget though that when Justice Antonin Scalia passed away, the Republican Party blocked President Barack Obama’s efforts to fill his seat. The party argued that because there was an upcoming election, the job should fall to the next president. There were 269 days until the election. Funny how they threw a huge fit when the sitting president tried to fill the seat before the election, but now they are insisting Trump fills the seat with only less than 50 days until the election.
Back in 2016, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said he would stand by his words that if a spot on the Supreme Court opens up near the time of the election then the decision should go to the newly elected president. “Stand by my words,” but now he is acting like he never said that and is supporting Trump in appointing a new Supreme Court justice. Trump recently announced he would “most likely” appoint a woman to the seat. He is considering Amy Coney Barrett a fierce proponent of reversing Roe v. Wade. If Roe is reversed, then women lose many of their reproductive rights that people have spent years vigorously fighting for. Reversing Roe means taking away a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body and life. Roe v. Wade (1973) was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court. The Court ruled that the Constitution protects a pregnant woman’s liberty to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction. If Roe is reversed then abortion will be outlawed and women will go back to getting illegal and unsafe abortions. Just because abortion is outlawed, it does not mean women will stop getting them.
As the country continues to mourn the loss of a feminist icon, we must not lose the fire inside of us fueling us to fight the inequalities in the country. I know everyone has been saying “your vote matters more than ever in this election,” but now it really does. With the loss of a fiery fighter, we cannot let what she has done be reversed, which is possible depending on who is elected in the upcoming election. Every vote counts. Do it for RBG. Let her legend live on within you and everything you fight for.