Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the oldest Supreme Court Justice has been in the news a lot lately as she battles cancer. But on Dec. 25, a movie called "On the Basis of Sex," starring Felicity Jones, started telling her story of the struggles she faced becoming a lawyer, a story that many women can learn from today.
Ginsburg was one of the first women to attend Harvard Law School. Despite the skepticism from everyone around her, and even having to transfer and start over at a different law school because she wasn't allowed to receive credit for what she already accomplished at Harvard, she never gave up.
Her husband, Martin, was also a lawyer and studied at Harvard succeeded immediately and got a job. However, Ginsburg was not able to get a job like he could, and was turned down multiple times because of being a woman. She was given reasons like the employees' wives would get jealous because she would be working with all men at a law firm. It made me realize how crazy that was, that woman fully capable, and just as intelligent and educated as males in the field, was denied because of her gender. Ruth was given ridiculous reasons, stereotypical reasons that still sometimes exist today.
Ginsburg knew it was wrong and settled for a job as a professor. But she used being a professor as a platform to teach a new generation that they should be challenging the way things are. They should learn to speak up for what is right, and that men and women should be treated equally, especially in the workplace.
As much as I would like to say times have changed, they have not completely changed. We still deal with the glass ceiling, and women have to watch as men climb to higher positions just because of being male. It is still a work in progress, and I think it is good that we have a movie like "On the Basis of Sex," to remind us that we can do anything, but we still have to keep standing up for what we believe in.
I did not know how much Ruth did for women and the history of women in law and politics, and it has made me want to learn more about women like her. She is a trendsetter, a woman who never gave up on trying to show others that women have so much more to offer than being a housewife. Ruth did her research and took on the risk of a case that others would say she had no chance of winning.
I admire people like that, and sure enough, she won the case even though she had never practiced being a lawyer. She believed in her abilities and intelligence, and not the doubts that everyone else laid upon her. I think we all could use a little motivation like that today because it can be disheartening for women in certain fields. You should not feel like you will never excel and move up, just because of your gender.
I say we all take a lesson from Ginsburg and get educated, get confident and stand up for yourself and all the women out there who strive to make a difference in this world.
