Certainly, I couldn’t let the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg pass without reminiscing about her (albeit minimal) place in the lives of Bruce and me. He was a law student at Rutgers in Newark in 1971 and Ruth Bader Ginsburg was his professor for Representation of the Poor. Bear in mind, as odd as it seems today, with more than 50 % of the students in law schools across the country being female, that it was very unique to have a female professor. And a young one, at that.
I remember Bruce mentioning a few “girls” in his classes, but they were extremely rare, and I might add, extremely smart! He spoke of “Ruthie” because she seemed a cut above the many of the professors he had. She was spunky, she was challenging, she was energy personified, and she was going places. Truth be known, Bruce was less interested in that class than many others, but she was a true leader, and he and his colleagues learned what she taught…her impact clearly in their minds.
Once he finished Law School, he went to New York University at night to get his LLM, namely a Masters of Tax Law, and one of his professors, coincidentally, was Marty Ginsburg, Ruth’s beloved husband, who taught the Meaning of Mergers and Acquisitions. I asked Bruce if he ever told Professor Ginsburg that he had his wife at Rutgers, and he did, which had to have made Marty smile with pride. From all I have seen and read, theirs was an amazing marriage, many times a seesaw for supporting whomever needed it most at each minute. We had such a view into the way they negotiated such demands on their time and lives when we watched both RBG and On the Basis of Sex.
My sadness at losing such a woman, such an icon, such a luminary, such a leader, is that she will, most likely, never be replaced. Regardless of how quickly the nominations and hearings begin, she will never leave our hearts or our psyche. She stood for us, but she stood for everyone who needed her voice. And one of the values I most respected in her was that her support was for the good of the community in which the issue resided, not just a representation of the poor, the rich, male, female, color of skin, language one spoke. She had an incredible ability to drill down, hone in on what was at stake, and what was of value.
As she challenged us to do, I “think of the way I want the world to be for my daughter and granddaughters” and I am bereft. Already, I see the changes coming, their voices muted, their rights withering away. And the same may be for my grandsons, as well. They will have to live in a world where there is only one way to think, with the decisions of people who are “the winners” speaking all the dictum, no voice of opposition to present a difference of opinion, a different way to look at things.
This is not what our Notorious had hoped would happen, although seeing the present climate, she would not be surprised, I am sure. There is no doubt in my mind that when she told her granddaughter her final wish that she not be replaced until after the election, she meant it with all her heart. I still remember hearing about a 30 something lady who changed the thoughts of so many young law students at Rutgers in the early 1970’s, and I know that for all she did in her career, all she influenced and taught to think about humanity in a more expansive way, she deserves better.
