I had just gotten home from work and my husband sent me a text that Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died. I cried as though I had lost a friend, a mentor, a family member, but I had never even met RBG. I was scheduled to meet her this last summer at the 8th Circuit’s women lawyer’s conference . . . but being that it is 2020—the year where everything goes wrong—the conference was cancelled due to COVID.
A lot of women (and men) felt a very personal loss at the death of RBG. I think it’s because she did so much for us and now, we will never be able to thank her. She dedicated her life to a fight for all women and thinking about that, quite frankly, makes me feel small. Ruth brought us this far, but there is still a long way to go.
When Ruth started law school, she was 1 of 4 women in her class and each were required to explain why they were deserving of their spot over a man. My law school class was 50% female—that is progress. Female law students in my class were told by the career services department that they should wear skirts to all of their interviews to increase their chance of being hired and to never ask about a firm’s gender equity practice or maternity leave. There is still a long way to go.
Even though Ruth graduated at the top of her class, no law firm would hire her. I had no problem getting a job after law school—that is progress. During my first big case as a lawyer, out-of-state co-counsel refused to learn my name and repeatedly called me “Sweetheart.” I was often asked to get coffee or take notes during meetings. There is still a long way to go.
A recent study by the American Bar Association showed that women lawyers are much more likely to be interrupted than male lawyers. And one would think that by the time you made it to the Supreme Court, female justices would no longer have to endure this slight . . . but sadly, a review of Supreme Court arguments shows that the three female justices were interrupted much more frequently than the male justices.
Ruth became a lawyer four years before the Equal Pay Act was passed making it illegal to pay women less than men for performing equal work. Women were earning 59 cents for every dollar earned by men. Today woman earn 77 cents for every dollar earned by men performing the same work. In 57 years, we have gained 18 cents. We haven’t even managed to cut the deficit by half. If you think women lawyers are spared this inequity, think again! Women law partners earn 56 cents for every dollar earned by their male counterparts. There is still a long way to go.
RBG called out discrimination against women in all of the corners where it was hiding. We take for granted that women are equal to men under the law, but that wasn’t the law before Ruth. How can we show our gratitude for an icon who gave so much to all of us? There is only one way. We must pick up the fight where she was forced to lay it down. It is a sad reality that I will not see gender equity in my time, but that can’t dissuade me from moving forward. One day my daughters will have to pick up the fight.
WE KEEP MOVING FORWARD UNTIL THERE ARE NINE.
