“That woman died with so much pressure on her shoulders, and she won’t even be mourned like a human. She’ll be mourned like a defense wall that crumbled.”
-Marion Teniade, twitter, 9/18/20
RBG was an incredible political force. The results of her time on the Supreme Court include the legalization of things that we now consider to be basic human rights—such as a woman’s right to have a bank account and own a credit card, a woman’s right to take out a mortgage without a male co-signer, the right to receive a fair wage without discrimination on the grounds of gender, the right to attend a public university regardless of gender, the legalization of same sex marriage, and so, so much more. Undoubtedly, she accomplished more for women’s rights in her time on the bench than any Justice ever has.
Most of us are acutely aware that the tragedy of RBG’s passing is much more complex than the grief that follows the death of any celebrity. Ginsburg wasn’t just a political icon, or a champion of women’s rights—she was, as Teniade so aptly described, a “defense wall that crumbled.” For many, she was the last pillar of justice in a sea of uncertainty. And, to speak frankly, her death comes right in the final moments of Trump’s elected term as president, leaving open the possibility that he will choose our next Justice. Many are left wondering if the decisions Ginsburg made during her time on the bench will stand up against a conservative Supreme Court body, or if rights for marginalized peoples in America are even more at risk than they were just a week ago. And less than 24 hours after Ginsburg’s death, politicians didn’t hesitate to give fire to those flames by engaging in a heated debate about who will choose our next Justice.
In the midst of such turbulence, it’s easy to lose sight of what Ginsburg’s life truly meant. Ginsburg wasn’t just a political force—she was an 87 year old woman with pancreatic cancer who was carrying a much heavier burden than any person should ever have to.
The true tragedy of Ginsburg’s death is that our democracy is so broken that our citizens feel like their future depends on an elderly woman’s ability to survive cancer. Ginsburg will be mourned as a defense wall, as a lawyer, as a political force, as a feminist icon, and as the Justice who died at a very inopportune time—let’s mourn her as a human, too.