Remembering Justice Ginsburg
illustration: Kat Meltzer
The passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg marks the conclusion of a singular legacy, a legacy that in more ways than one advanced the United States a few steps closer toward achieving the inalienable rights promised, but not delivered, in our constitution, and redefined and expanded the roles and opportunities afforded to women in American society.
It is beyond our capabilities to adequately express our gratitude for Justice Ginsburg’s contribution to the American experiment. We join millions across the country and around the world in honoring, remembering, and mourning the passing of an individual who in life was a servant of the people, and in death remains a symbol of our higher aspirations and the better angels of our nature.
Justice Ginsburg’s passing also marks the beginning of a monumental shift in the make-up of our nation’s highest court—a shift that threatens not only a woman’s right to choose, but millions of Americans’ access to health care, thousands of DREAMers at risk of deportation, our national ability to combat climate change and our individual right to exercise the one remaining check that the American citizen has against our representatives when they fail to act as a check on themselves: the vote.
We believe that the issues at stake – voting rights, access to health care, environmental protection, and equal rights for all Americans regardless of race, gender or creed – are non-partisan; and that it is in our collective interest not only to do all that we can to prevent a cynical power grab on the eve on election, but to take every action we can to fight for a government that represents its citizens—and to express, in the streets, in the mail, and at the ballot, the very action through which many of Justice Ginsburg’s most ardent opinions became known: dissent.
In the wake of tragedy, in the midst of a pandemic, it can be helpful to remember Justice Ginsburg’s own words:
“I am optimistic in the long run. A great man once said the true symbol of the United States is not the bald eagle, it's the pendulum, and when the pendulum swings too far in one direction, it will go back."
We believe that the pendulum will once again reverse course, just as we believe that the long arc of history bends toward justice, but it doesn’t do so on its own.
One of the most vital ways to wrest back control is to flip the senate. Currently, the party in control of the senate represents fewer Americans than the party out of power, and in turn, has appointed judges to the courts whose views do not reflect the majority of the American people.
To help in this effort, consider making a contribution to Flip the Senate
And more importantly, make sure that you are registered to vote and aware of the voting laws in your state. To find out about the latest voting information in your state, visit The Late Show and Stephen Colbert’s website, Better Know A Ballot.
