Introduction

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a current Associate Justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, was born on March 15, 1933. Before her time in the federal court, she was a professor of law at Rutgers and then at Columbia University. Having assumed office in 1993 under the Clinton administration and still going strong today at age 80, Ginsburg has left quite a legacy; infact, her being appointed to the Supreme Court in and of itself was a landmark moment in U.S. judicial history, what with Ginsburg being only the second female appointed to the Supreme Court (Sandra Day O’Connor being the first) and being the first Jewish female to be appointed.

“I would not like to be the only woman in the court.”

Whether this was her intent or not, Ginsburg’s pursuit of her own dream in law would help further blaze a trail, not only for women who wished to follow a similar career path, but, also for women in general; inspiring them to continue to permeate many male-dominated fields and to prove that women, not only can competently participate in, but also can make valuable contributions in said fields.

With this in mind, many of the pursuits of Ginsburg’s legal career and her subsequent life as a public figure have revolved around the issues of women’s rights. Ginsburg’s life and career have proven to be, not only a testament to the enduring strength of women and the need to push for equality, but also a testament to the strength of the human spirit. Ginsburg has proven to be an outstanding example of leadership, not just for women, but for people all around because of her outstanding intellect and relentless nature when regarding issues of women’s rights. Outstanding examples of this use of intelligence and drive would be: her success at Harvard and Columbia, her involvement in women’s rights and advocacy organizations and the legal precedents she has established as a Supreme Court Justice.

“It is not women’s liberation, it is women’s and men’s liberation”

When Ginsburg began her career as a law student at Harvard, she was one of nine women in her class of 500. Ginsburg has been quoted saying, due to women’s minority position in her class and in the law community at large, she felt as though “all eyes were on her” in class and that she was not only a representative of herself, but, also the entire community of women. From that point on, Ginsburg’s mission became to dispel any existing stereotypes that existed about women in law by setting the best example possible and fighting relentlessly for women’s legal and social equality. With this determination in mind, Ginsburg, who, as a freshman at Harvard Law not only had to balance her schoolwork, but also raising a daughter, still managed to be at the top of her class, not only at Harvard where she began, but also at Columbia University where she transferred.

Despite her academic success at both Harvard and Colombia, Ginsburg soon realized the stereotypes and discrimination certainly didn’t end or become easier to deal with in the professional world. In 1960, despite receiving a glowing recommendation from the dean of Harvard Law, Justice Felix Frankfurter turned down Ginsburg’s application for a clerkship position because of her gender. But, despite this discriminatory adversity, Ginsburg still pressed on. She was determined to not allow the prejudices of others define her career.

From 1961-1963, Ginsburg went from being a research director at Columbia Law school to becoming a professor of law at Rutgers (a position which Ginsburg would hold for 9 years). Not to mention that in 1970, during her time as a law professor at Rutgers, Ginsburg co-founded the Women’s Rights Reporter, the first law journal with women’s rights as a key point.

Due to Ginsburg’s struggles trying to make it into the law field as a woman, it became Ginsburgs’ goal, not only to be an example for women, but, primarily, to work for the general legal advancement of women. Through Ginsburg’s push for the advancement of women, she also called for the advancement of men and society at large, promoting a newer and broader sense of equality.

This background Ginsburg had as a woman in the field of law struggling for equality, Ginsburg went on to further be a part of the women’s rights and advocacy by co-founding the Women’s Rights Project via the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union). Much of Ginsburg’s work with the WRP included working on cases involving women’s economic equality. Whether this be in cases of women’s property rights vs. her ex-husband’s in a divorce case (Reed v. Reed) or whether a woman should receive military compensation on behalf of a male relative, Ginsburg always pushed for legal fairness for women. One of the main tools Ginsburg used was the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment, saying that, in many cases, women’s legal treatment in a lot of these scenarios was in direct violation with the principal of this clause. She argued that, no matter what, women should not be treated differently in legal protocol. A very interesting moment in this process would be Ginsburg’s stance in the case of Duren v. Missouri. The argument in that case was, since jury duty was voluntary for women in the state of Missouri at that time, it was setting the legal precedent that women’s voices were less important than mens. Ginsburg wasn’t searching for the rights of special interest groups, Ginsburg wanted a level playing field. Through these tactics, her articulate nature and unwavering vision of equality, the precedent upon which many economic policies are considered in regards to gender has significantly changed.

“Women will only have true equality when men share with them the responsibility of bringing up the next generation.”

Ginsburg had developed quite the reputation for herself in world of law, what with all of the work she had been doing for the advancement of women. Subsequently, in 1980, President Jimmy Carter appointed Ginsburg and 10 other women to the U.S. Court of Appeals. From this point, Ginsburg continued to climb the legal ladder and inched closure and closure to her nomination for the Supreme Court. However, that is not to say that it was smooth sailing from that point on. When President Clinton had announced his nomination of Ginsburg, many questioned her ability to be objective, what with her roots firmly planted in the issues of women’s rights. With this in mind, during many of her confirmation hearings, Ginsburg took very moderate stances in order to secure her place on the Supreme Court, for her interests lay in human rights, not specifically women’s rights (although they being particularly relevant to her life).

Ginsburg took her oath for the Supreme Court on August 10th, 1993. In her career since then, Ginsburg has proven to have the ability to walk the tightrope between being a human rights activist and a Supreme Court Justice. While, in many cases, Ginsburg has still stood by her beliefs for women’s rights (what with her being pro-choice in most legal contexts), she still is able to be more moderate by considering the grander legal scheme (what with her opposition to Nebraska’s partial birth abortion policy).

All in all, throughout Ginsburg’s career, she has proven to be an excellent leader through her determination, intellect and emotional intelligence. Through her battle against gender based discrimination, Ginsburg showed her determination to prevail in the legal world. Through her use of intellect and pragmatism, she was able to reshape the legal game for women. And, finally (and most currently relevant), through her application of emotional intelligence, Ginsburg is able to be a more effective justice by having a sense of empathy and understanding for her fundamental opponents, allowing her to be more legally level-headed.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Christian Doyle is an 18 year old freshman at Wagner College. Despite his overall interest in career pursuit being in the realm of the performing arts, Christian is also very interested in social justice and equality.