I’ve always enjoyed the idea that someone can live an eternity as long as they are remembered after they die. I find motivation in the thought of being remembered for who I am and what I did long after I die. Hopefully those left behind would find motivation in their memories of me too. I will strive to become someone like this as I continue to live.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is one of those people whose life will be continued through memory for a very, very long time. She led a life of action, becoming an idol in modern America for her legal, cultural and feministic accomplishments.
The Supreme Court announced Ginsburg had died on Sept. 18 from complications with pancreatic cancer at the age of 87. She had first been diagnosed with early stage pancreatic cancer in 2009.
Ginsburg took an open seat on the Supreme Court in 1993, becoming the second woman to do so. Six years later she had her first public medical issue with a surgery treating colon cancer. Over the years, Ginsburg remained a powerful force on the bench despite her increasing health complications.
Ginsburg’s legacy of strength did not begin with the battle for health or her seat on the Supreme Court. Her historic headway in feminism began in the 70s with her promotion of gender equality in the courts.
Ginsburg became the first female tenured professor at Columbia Law School after struggling through her studies and motherhood simultaneously. She strived for equal rights throughout her entire career, especially when it came to interpreting the 14th Amendment.
“The words of the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause — ‘nor shall any state deny to any person the equal protection of the laws,’” Ginsburg said in an interview with National Public Radio. “Well that word, ‘any person,’ covers women as well as men. And the Supreme Court woke up to that reality in 1971.” We see the effects of this rendition of the 14th Amendment today. Women have more control over their bodies as the years go on. Women have better access to health care and birth control. Women can join the armed forces and, more than that, they can join the forces in a combat role.
That last one affects me on an incredibly deep level. I love my job as a combat engineer. Joining the Army has been so beneficial for my financial, social and mental health, and I couldn’t imagine my life being any other way. I wouldn’t have been able to do this if Ginsburg hadn’t helped create this view of equality for all people, not just men.
Ginsburg is now lying in state in the U.S. Capitol, and is the first woman to do so. Even in death she continues to meet what used to seem like unreachable milestones for women.
Ginsburg is the embodiment of strength, endurance, confidence and equality. Her legacy has changed this country forever. She has led the way to a new America for everyone—a better America.
Don’t let Ginsburg’s death, and the surely horrendous political aftermath, subtract from all that she has built up. Fight like she did for women’s rights, equal rights and gender equality.
Anteia McCollum can be reached at arg-news@uidaho.edu or on Twitter @antxiam5.