RBG’s legacy of justice and civility

An American flag waves in Woodstock, Vermont, on July Fourth. (Gareth Henderson Photo)

While the nation faces swirling political headwinds, it's important to remember what unites us. To do that, we honor a true champion for justice and civility. Those qualities never had a stronger guardian than Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who was honored throughout the nation following her Sept. 18 passing. 

Ginsburg's tireless work fighting for women's rights stands as a shining example of unity through justice. Her courage moved the country forward. She waged her own battles against gender discrimination, notably at Harvard Law School, where she was one of nine women in a class of over 500. She would later take that battle to the courts in the 1970s, when, with the ACLU Women’s Rights Project, she won several landmark Supreme Court decisions striking down laws that treated men differently than women based on gender stereotypes.

At the U.S. Supreme Court, Ginsburg’s work and rulings made an indelible mark on history, including the 1996 Virginia Military Institute case where she successfully fought for a women's right to attend the state funded, traditionally all-male school. In 2013, she issued a stinging dissent in the Shelby County case which removed federal oversight from a key Voting Rights Act provision meant to protect jurisdictions with a history of discrimination. As a CNN report noted, that 2013 case led to the start of the "Notorious RBG" moniker, which became part of popular culture and introduced her to new generations. She kept on breaking down barriers even after her death, becoming the first woman to lie in state at the U.S. Capitol in Washington.

Throughout her incredible career, Ginsburg's commitment to justice was combined with another constant: her defense of civility. That was exemplified in her longtime friendship with Justice Antonin Scalia, with whom she had little in common when it came to judicial views. But they shared other interests, and could still be friends. That's the substance unity is made of, and something we need to cultivate in today's world. 

In an article in Forbes on Monday, Sarah Chamberlain, president and CEO of the Republican Main Street Partnership, recalled when she first met the famous justice. 

"In a brief meeting I had with Justice Ginsburg, her words to me were simple and powerful: 'Keep going. Keep fighting.' Her struggles as a woman through poverty and prejudice inspired my own career to keep up the fight," Chamberlain wrote. "But I must note, it is not a fight meant to tear anyone down. Rather, it is a fight to build everyone up."

Efforts to build up face a constant test amid a bitterly contentious presidential campaign, racial tension, economic turmoil and the pandemic. Almost always, the problems appear much louder than even the thought of progress. For some, that means the issues can't be resolved. But Ginsburg showed us how to courageously confront the issues, keep the tone civil, and with time, bring more justice into people's lives. That unrelenting persistence, buttressed by action, organization and civility rather than volume, is what charts the course for true change. That's how we continue the fight. 

Rabbi Lauren Holtzblatt captured what the nation must do, at last week's memorial service for Ginsburg at the U.S. Capitol: 

"Even as our hearts are breaking, we must rise with her strength and move forward."

— Gareth Henderson