It all started with an enthusiastic mid-class text from my mom: “Are you going to see Ruth Bader Ginsburg?” With no idea of what she was referring to, I began typing this into Google when I noticed all the students surrounding me had their computer screens open to the same announcement. Granted, this may have been because I was in a Political Science class. However, other than the fact that she is a Supreme Court Justice, I knew almost nothing about Ruth Bader Ginsburg. However, I sensed the importance of this event and hurriedly requested a ticket.
During her talk, I discovered that The Notorious R.B.G. is an incredibly impressive and accomplished individual, a woman who I suprisingly shared a lot of common ground with. She turned out to be one of my major role models and I didn’t even know it.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg embodies the infamous Shakespeare quotation, “Though she be but little, she is fierce.” At 83 years of age, she commits to a rigorous workout regimen and regularly completes a set of 20 push-ups. This on its own is extremely noteworthy, without mentionaing her remarkable list of legal and judicial accomplishments. Justice Ginsburg spoke to the strong desire to be successful that she has embodied since her youth. During her talk, she spoke of the critical advice her mother gave her: to (1) be independent and (2) be a lady, or to avoid “wasting time on unproductive emotions”.
Justice Ginsburg explained how she originally wanted to go into education, though her career in the law ultimately allowed her to work as a professor. Her passion and commitment to her work is astounding, as is evidenced by her accounts of staying up all night finalizing a brief to ensure it was as clear and concise as possible. She dedicated herself to contributing towards critical human rights issues, from gay rights and women’s rights to gun control. She’s a mentor to others, and works closely with her law clerks to support their professional and scholarly development. As an aspiring law student with an interest in human rights law, I resonated with Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s thoughtful reflection on her life. She shared startling statistics and anecdotes from her law school years, such as how she was 1 of 9 women in her class of 500 students at Harvard Law School. On one occasion, the Dean invited all 9 of these women over to his house for dinner and questioned each of them as to why they were taking a man’s spot at the law school. Justice Ginsburg also discussed the rampant workplace discrimination she experienced after law school because of her gender, religion, and status as a mother. She explained how employers at the time believed that women whose husbands were effectively employed did not need equal pay and benefits packages because their livelihood was essentially provided for, a precedent that she was committed to eliminating. In response to the modern social criticism that women are trying to “have it all”, she shared, “I have had it all, but not necessarily at once.”
Through her work with the American Civil Liberties Union she founded the Women’s Rights Project, which increased efforts to support women’s and men’s rights in the workplace. She has made incredible strides toward increasing female empowerment, and the values she holds regarding women’s career and personal ambitions are values I hold as well. She embraces and propels positive change and fights for the protection and empowerment of all people, and discredits age-old precedents that no longer fit our world today. “A Conversation with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg” was one of the most inspiring events I’ve attended at Notre Dame thus far. Justice Ginsburg was informative, sharp, and incredibly entertaining. After learning about her life and her career, it’s clear to me she is nothing short of Notorious.
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