The Notorious R.B.G. And Her Stamp On Me
Who Is R.B.G. And Why the Stamp?
R.B.G. are the initials for Ruth Bader Ginsburg, also affectionately referred to as the NOTORIOUS R.B.G. by her supporters. She is known for her service (my utmost gratitude R.B.G.) as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 to 2020. She is known for being a feminist icon and paving the way for women’s rights through her fight against gender discrimination. While she is known to be the second female appointed judge of the Supreme Court she is single handedly one of the most recognized public figures. It’s only fitting her portrait be honored by the U.S. Postal Service with the release of the above postal stamp featuring R.B.G. in her traditional black robe and dazzling accessories.
R.B.G.’S Stamp On Me
I am eager to get my hands on the R.B.G. stamp. It was released this month and is now available at all local U.S. Postal Service locations. In addition, the postal stamp is available online at USPS Storefront. But that is not the sole purpose of this piece. R.B.G.’s portrait may now be a postal stamp but she means more to me than any other public figure.
As a feminist myself, I consider R.B.G. to be the mascot of the movement against gender discrimination. I identify as She/Her, and as Helen Reddy once sang, “I am woman hear me roar.” I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies in addition to a Minor in Women’s Gender & Sexuality Studies. I am proud to have achieved the Minor because it is the foundation of how I proceed forward as a woman in just about every life circumstance. The Minor I hold was created because of women like R.B.G. who paved the way for women to pursue higher education at the collegiate level.
As a She/Her, I have experienced discrimination and I am not ashamed to admit that. However, I do not consider myself a victim of gender discrimination. I stand tall and proclaim that I have experienced gender discrimination because saying it out loud and proclaiming it in print takes back power for myself and every other woman who has been excluded based on their sex.
R.B.G. Used Her Power For Change
R.B.G. used her voice and her positions of power to pave the way for change. Here are a list of some of her accomplishments that inspired generations of women to push through societal norms and tear down gender barriers that were wrongfully in place.
She was one of 9 women in a class size of 500 (male) students who attended Harvard Law School. While attending law school she experienced harassment by being asked to explain her thoughts about taking the spot of man with her attendance. She pushed through and continued on with her studies while being banned from certain sections of the library on the Harvard Law School Campus. Instead of letting exclusion derail her she used it as momentum to propel her forward to transfer to Columbia Law School in 1958 for her final year of law school. In other words a big “F” you to Harvard Law.
In the 1950’s, she was the first Jew and mother to be hired by a traditional law firm. Traditional housewife? I think not.
In 1959, she was the first woman to law clerk for the Honorable Edmund L. Palmieri, Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
In 1961, she was the first woman to be a research associate for the Columbia Law School Project on International Procedure.
In 1962, she was the first woman associate director at Columbia Law School.
In 1963, she was the first woman Professor of Law at Rutgers University School of Law.
In 1971, she founded the Women’s Right Project with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
In 1972, she was the first woman to receive tenure at Columbia Law School.
From 1973-1980, she served as the general counsel for the ACLU.
From 1977-1978, she served as a fellow at Stanford, California, at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences Department.
In 1980, she was appointed by President Jimmy Carter to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
In 1993, she was nominated by President Bill Clinton, as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
On August 10, 1993, she was the second woman and first woman of Jewish descent to serve as a Supreme Court Justice, on the United States Supreme Court. While she served as a Supreme Court Justice she fiercely advocated for gender equality and the women’s right to choose.
On September 18, 2020, R.B.G. died from metastatic pancreas cancer. However, she continued to make her mark through her transition of life by requesting her seat on the Supreme Court not yet be filled until a new President of the United States was elected.
My Final Opinion…
First and foremost, thank you R.B.G. for your perseverance, poise, strength, and sense of humor. You are a class act to follow and you have single handedly changed the future for every little girl in this country. As a PROUD aunt to four young girls, I am forever grateful to R.B.G. because she has paved the way for their freedom to achieve anything that they set their minds to.
As a woman, I am grateful to R.B.G. for leading with poise and strength. Often, women are not taken seriously when they dare to challenge a man, or the institution of male power, especially when any form of emotion is expressed. I carry that same poise into any professional encounter I am apart of because “Reacting in anger or annoyance will not advance one’s ability to persuade.” - R.B.G.
But most importantly, thank you R.B.G. for providing the opportunity for women to CHOOSE what their life will look life not limited upon their sex. “A gender line…helps to keep women not on a pedestal, but in a cage.” - R.B.G.
