The guidance that shaped Ruth Bader Ginsburg: US Supreme Court justice and feminist icon

The life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a true inspiration. She drove the legal battle for gender equality in the 1970s, became only the second woman to sit on the US Supreme Court, and was a celebrated voice of dissent. But in her own words, she couldn’t have done it alone...

Ginsburg credited many of her core values to her mother Celia, who led by example. She taught her to be independent, to stand up for herself no matter what, and to savor the joy of reading.

At Cornell University, Ginsburg had the opportunity to study European literature under Vladimir Nabokov. That experience taught her how the right words, put in the right order, could bring ideas and images to life.

On her wedding day, Ginsberg’s mother-in-law warned her: “In every good marriage, it helps sometimes to be a little deaf.” That taught her to stay composed in the face of provocation – wisdom she relied on not just at home, but at work.

“RBG” gave birth to her first child in 1955, a year before a planned enrolment at Harvard Law School. The idea of juggling both was daunting, but her father-in-law said: “If you really want to study law, you will stop worrying and find a way to manage child and school.” She did.

With a nanny looking after her daughter Jane on school days, Ginsberg made sure to squeeze the most out of a packed schedule – using the balance of parenting and studying to gain a widened perspective that other students did not yet have.

After graduation in 1959, Ginsburg struggled to find a job due to her gender. But one of her professors, Gerald Gunther, pushed to get RBG placed in a federal court clerkship – vowing to never recommend another student if she was not accepted. 

Ginsburg believed that her accomplishments wouldn’t have been possible without her husband Marty. He proofed her writing, did the cooking at home, supported her through bouts of cancer, and drummed up the necessary support to secure her selection for the Supreme Court.

Ultimately, “the Notorious RBG” (as she was nicknamed) went on to navigate the most demanding job in the legal world with an independent spirit – setting an example for a new generation of trailblazers.

Asked for her recipe of success, her answer was always the same: a belief in the power of the written word, a loyal support network, and “more than a little bit of luck”.