It has been announced that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, one of the most iconic political figures in modern American history, who in her 80s became a legal, cultural and feminist icon, passed away on Friday, September 18th. Her death was announced by the Supreme Court, saying the cause was complications from metastatic cancer of the pancreas. Within the statement, the Court said Ginsburg died at her home in Washington surrounded by family. She was 87 years old.
Just days before her death, as her strength waned, Ginsburg dictated this statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera: “My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.”
She knew what was to come. Ginsburg’s death will have profound consequences for the court and the country. Inside the court, not only is the leader of the liberal wing gone, but with the Court about to open a new term, Chief Justice John Roberts no longer holds the controlling vote in closely contested cases.
Ginsburg subsequently served 27 years on the nation’s highest court, becoming its most prominent member. Her death will inevitably set in motion what promises to be a nasty and tumultuous political battle over who will succeed her, and it thrusts the Supreme Court vacancy into the spotlight of the presidential campaign.
By the time she was in her 80s, she had become something of a rock star to women of all ages. She was the subject of a hit documentary, a biopic, an operetta, merchandise galore featuring her “Notorious RBG” moniker, a Time magazine cover, and regular Saturday Night Live sketches.
She will be missed by the entire nation as one of our country’s fighters for gender equality. She will join her husband, Marty Ginsburg, and is survived by their children, Jane and James Ginsburg.
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