The notorious RBG

This week the world bid farewell to a feminist icon, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG), the second female judge to the US Supreme Court. When someone breaks a glass ceiling for a people, their struggle, accomplishments and loss seem personal to members of that group. When someone like Justice RBG, Benazir Bhutto or Asma Jahangir is no more amongst us, the loss feels personal to those pushing boundaries for similar causes.

RBG lived a tremendous life despite her struggles as a mother of two, a husband diagnosed with cancer while she was pursuing a law degree at Harvard Law. Her career began alongside her duties as a mother and care-taking spouse. She did this while taking classes for her ailing husband — showing her resolve and commitment towards both family and career.

Like all women in the profession of law, she faced gender-based discrimination. She was one of the nine females in her batch and experienced misogyny there onwards. After graduating, RBG was not selected as a judicial clerk to the SC because of her gender. Later, the progressive leadership of Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton paved her way as judge of Court of Appeal and later to the SC, like when in Pakistan, five female lawyers were elevated as judges to High Courts under Benazir Bhutto’s leadership.

As a lawyer, she pursued strategic litigation on six cases involving gender-based discrimination. Most of her career in academia and law focused on sex-based discrimination and it was not exclusive to women alone. An example of this is the case of Moritz v. Commissioner of Inland Revenue where she represented a man discriminated based on gender when it came to availing a tax break available to female caregivers of ailing parents — thereby changing the landscape of American jurisprudence by challenging the century-old established legal precedents.

As a judge, she took the progressive route and earned the notorious RBG title for her series of dissents. Not only was RBG clear-headed but expressed dissent with grace and was a good friend with the conservative Justice Antonin Scalia. This is a quality required of every litigator and judge — to engage with dissent with grace and reason.

Justice RBG’s legacy goes beyond US borders. She broke stereotypes through her personal struggles and showed how a woman can be a mother, attend to her ailing husband, and excel in her career as a litigator and judge. Despite her age and medical complications, she never gave up and continued her crusade for upholding the American Constitution and values such as liberty and equality. She did justice to the opportunity given to her by being on the apex court of the US and consistently promoted gender equality through her judgments. RBG’s judicial career shows the importance of having female representation in every domain of decision-making; particularly legislation and adjudication.

The world would be a better and a more equal place with people like RBG and for that to happen patriarchy needs to be dismantled from its core. At homes, parents have a duty to give equal opportunities to their children regardless of gender. In educational and professional institutes, female role models must be celebrated so young women can aspire to push the boundaries further. The role of women in leadership positions must be increased with greater support from the state to female professionals who are also mothers. The role of a supportive family, especially of men as fathers and husbands, is pivotal in creating and promoting women like Justice RBG.

Whilst in Pakistan, we still do not have a female judge to the SC, female law practitioners can draw inspiration from RBG’s life as to how through dedication and commitment glass-ceilings can be shattered. For patriarchy exists globally to the disadvantage of women and it takes RBGs to shake it from the core to make the world a better place for generations to follow.

Rest in power, RBG!

Published in The Express Tribune, September 23^rd, 2020.

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