In Memoriam 2020: Ruth Bader Ginsburg (1933–2020) Tribute List

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court, died of pancreatic cancer on September 18 at the age of 87. Appointed by President Clinton in 1993, she became well-known as an advocate for women's equality; her dissent in the 2007 Ledbetter case is credited with inspiring the Fair Pay Act of 2009. Hailed as a brilliant legal scholar and an inspiration to millions, she earned the monicker "Notorious RBG." Just prior to her death, she said, "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed." This list includes words from her writings, speeches, and Supreme Court decisions.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. affirm
    declare solemnly and formally as true
    "Arizona voters sought to restore the core principle that voters should choose their representatives, not the other way around. The elections clause, we affirm, does not hinder that endeavor."
    – Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission decision (2015)
  2. bondage
    the state of being under the control of another person
    "Think back to 1787. Who were 'we the people'? … They certainly weren't women … they surely weren't people held in human bondage. The genius of our Constitution is that over now more than 200 sometimes turbulent years that 'we' has expanded and expanded."
    - Speech at Georgetown University (2015)
  3. brethren
    the lay members of a male religious order
    "I ask no favor for my sex. All I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks."
    - As quoted in the documentary "RBG" (2018)
  4. convey
    transmit or serve as the medium for transmission
    “He used words to paint pictures. Even today, when I read, I notice with pleasure when an author has chosen a particular word, a particular place, for the picture it will convey to the reader.”
    – My Own Words (2016)
  5. dignity
    the quality of being worthy of esteem or respect
    "The decision whether or not to bear a child is central to a woman's life, to her well-being and dignity. It is a decision she must make for herself. When the government controls that decision for her, she is being treated as less than a full adult human responsible for her own choices."
    – Senate hearing (1993)
  6. discriminate
    marked by the ability to see or make fine distinctions
    "Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet."
    – Shelby County v. Holder dissent (2013)
  7. dissent
    a difference of opinion
    "Dissents speak to a future age. It's not simply to say, 'My colleagues are wrong and I would do it this way.' But the greatest dissents do become court opinions and gradually over time their views become the dominant view. So that's the dissenter's hope: that they are writing not for today, but for tomorrow."
    – Interview with NPR, 2002
  8. dissuade
    turn away from by persuasion
    "A would-be polluter may or may not be dissuaded by the existence of a remedy on the books, but a defendant once hit in its pocketbook will surely think twice before polluting again."
    – Friends of the Earth v. Laidlaw Environmental Services decision (2000)
  9. enduring
    unceasing
    "Real change, enduring change, happens one step at a time."
    - As quoted in the documentary "RBG" (2018)
  10. exception
    an instance that does not conform to a rule
    "Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn't be that women are the exception."
    - CNN (2009)
  11. feminism
    a doctrine that advocates equal rights for women
    “I remember envying the boys long before I even knew the word feminism, because I liked shop better than cooking or sewing.”
    – My Own Words (2016)
  12. foist
    force onto another
    "No one who is in business for profit can foist his or her beliefs on a workforce that includes many people who do not share those beliefs."
    – New Republic interview (2014)
  13. impediment
    something immaterial that interferes with action or progress
    "So often in life, things that you regard as an impediment turn out to be great, good fortune."
    – My Own Words (2016)
  14. intolerable
    incapable of being put up with
    “The enormous difference between fighting gender discrimination as opposed to race discrimination is good people immediately perceive race discrimination as evil and intolerable. But when I talked about sex-based discrimination, I got the response, 'What are you talking about? Women are treated ever so much better than men!”
  15. perpetuate
    cause to continue or prevail
    "Institutional placement of persons who can handle and benefit from community settings perpetuates unwarranted assumptions that persons so isolated are incapable or unworthy of participating in community life."
    – Olmstead v. L.C. decision (1999)
  16. persuade
    cause somebody to adopt a certain position or belief
    “When a thoughtless or unkind word is spoken, best tune out. Reacting in anger or annoyance will not advance one’s ability to persuade.”
    – My Own Words (2016)
  17. precedent
    an example that is used to justify similar occurrences
    "Our precedent suggests, and lower courts have overwhelmingly held, that the unlawful practice is the current payment of salaries infected by gender-based (or race-based) discrimination – a practice that occurs whenever a paycheck delivers less to a woman than to a similarly situated man."
    – Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. dissent (2007)
  18. preclude
    make impossible, especially beforehand
    "Approving some religious claims while deeming others unworthy of accommodation could be perceived as favoring one religion over another, the very risk the Establishment Clause was designed to preclude. The court, I fear, has ventured into a minefield."
    – Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores dissent (2014)
  19. prejudice
    a partiality preventing objective consideration of an issue
    “Rabbi Alfred Bettleheim once said: “Prejudice saves us a painful trouble, the trouble of thinking.”
    – My Own Words (2016)
  20. presumptive
    having a reasonable basis for belief or acceptance
    "Presumptively invalid ... a law or official policy that denies to women, simply because they are women, equal opportunity to aspire, achieve, participate in, and contribute to society, based upon what they can do."
    U.S. v. Virginia decision (1996)
  21. professional
    of or relating to or suitable as an occupation
    "I tell law students… if you are going to be a lawyer and just practice your profession, you have a skill—very much like a plumber. But if you want to be a true professional, you will do something outside yourself… something that makes life a little better for people less fortunate than you."
    - The Mercury News (2017)
  22. prophecy
    knowledge of the future, as from a divine source
    "The court’s conclusion that a constitutionally adequate recount is impractical is a prophecy the court’s own judgment will not allow to be tested. Such an untested prophecy should not decide the presidency of the United States."
    – Bush v. Gore dissent (2000)
  23. prophylactic
    warding off
    "Just as buildings in California have a greater need to be earthquake proofed, places, where there is greater racial polarization in voting, have a greater need for prophylactic measures to prevent purposeful race discrimination."
    – Dissent on decision to strike down parts of the Voting Rights Act (2013)
  24. stature
    high level of respect gained by impressive achievement
    “I don’t say women’s rights—I say the constitutional principle of the equal citizenship stature of men and women.”
    – My Own Words (2016)
  25. vengeance
    harming someone in retaliation for something they have done
    “In Greek mythology, Pallas Athena was celebrated as the goddess of reason and justice.1 To end the cycle of violence that began with Agamemnon’s sacrifice of his daughter, Iphigenia, Athena created a court of justice to try Orestes, thereby installing the rule of law in lieu of the reign of vengeance."
    – My Own Words (2016)
Created on Sat Sep 19 13:28:25 EDT 2020

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