America Reimagined: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dies

BY American Reportage

AMERICA REIMAGINED

A Collaboration Between

Boyd's Station and

American Reportage​

ESSAY

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dies

Photography by Rod Lamkey Jr. and Pete Marovich

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, died as a result of complications from metastatic cancer of the pancreas at her home in Washington, D.C., on September 18, 2020. She was 87.

Sworn in as the 107th Supreme Court justice on August 10, 1993, Ginbsurg became the second woman to sit on the distinguished bench. The justice, who was appointed by former President Bill Clinton, cemented herself in America’s history as a champion for gender equality and a fighter for social justice.
 
“The Notorious RBG,” as she was often referred to, spent her career fighting for the rights of women and other marginalized groups. Ginsburg lent her voice to countless opinions, and became particularly well known for her scathing, clearly worded dissents. 

Within hours of her death, a spontaneous vigil began on the steps of the Supreme Court with mourners filling the steps leading up to the Supreme Court and spilling across the street during. By the next day, the steps of the Supreme Court were blanketed with flowers, homemade signs and candles left by of mourners who came to pay their respects to the judicial icon.

Hundreds of mourners again packed the plaza and street in front of the Court on the following night, spilling onto the grounds of the U.S. Capitol for another vigil.

Three days of events honored the pioneer of women’s rights beginning with her casket’s arrival at the Supreme Court. Former law clerks to Ginsburg served as honorary pallbearers and lined the pathway on the steps of the Supreme Court as her casket was carried inside for a service.

After the ceremony, Ginsburg’s casket was moved outdoors in front of the Supreme Court so the public could pay their respects from a distance due to coronavirus pandemic guidelines. 

Ginsburg’s American flag-draped casket laid in repose at the Supreme Court for two full days as a steady stream of mourners lined up to pay their respects.

 

With a Republican majority U.S. Senate promising to confirm a replacement before the election, and President Donald Trump promising his supporters yet another conservative justice on the Supreme Court, Ginsburg’s death thrusts the vacancy into the spotlight of the 2020 presidential campaign.

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