The Best Essays to Read About RBG
Including one written by the legend herself.
Like all of you, I’m devastated by the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. When I saw the news on Twitter last night, I immediately texted “fuck” to a few friends, which apparently is what pretty much everyone else did, too. This one hurts, badly.
There’s not much I can say about RBG—her life, her impact, her legacy—that other people haven’t already said better. So on this sad Saturday morning, I’m sharing a few of my favorite pieces written about her (and one written *by* her), in case you want to read.
Rest in peace, Ruth.
——————
Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Advice for Living (RBG for The New York Times) — “How fortunate I was to be alive and a lawyer when, for the first time in United States history, it became possible to urge, successfully, before legislatures and courts, the equal-citizenship stature of women and men as a fundamental constitutional principle.”
The Glorious RBG (Irin Carmon for The Cut) — “Only someone so stubborn and single-minded, someone so in love with the work, could have accomplished what she did.”
In the Presence of Greatness: My Afternoon With Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Cynthia Littleton for Variety) —”She was the most intimidating interview I have ever done.”
Ruth Bader Ginsburg Changed the World (Mark Joseph Stern for Slate) — “When Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg began her legal career in 1959, the United States was a nation of gender apartheid.”
And this incredible speech by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, done on her Instagram Live last night, that is a must-watch from beginning to end. My favorite quote:
“It is not the time for cynicism. It is not the time to give up. It is not the time to say, 'it's too far gone,' or, 'I don't know what to do.' We're going to talk about it right now because it is not hyperbole that the actual balance of our democracy rests in the actions that we choose to make, that I choose to make, that you choose to make as an individual between now and Election day."