thank you. it was my honor to serve alongside justice ruth bader ginsburg for 15 of her 27 years as a member of the supreme court of the united states. prior to that. it was my more stressful honor to argue before her as an advocate in the port but her contributions to the court and to the law began decades earlier. as a law student in the 1950s and a law professor in the 60s and 70s. she helped pave the way for women in the legal field as an advocate. she argued six important cases before the supreme court winning five as a judge of the united states court of appeals for the district of columbia circuit, and then an associate justice of the supreme court. she modeled excellence in the craft over more than four decades on the bench. throughout she inspired countless others to better understand our constitution. and to see opportunity and promise in our country. i am delighted that the smithsonian's national museum of american history is honoring justice ginsburg with its great americans medal. hello everyone and welcome to the smithsonian's national museum of american history and to this women's history month capstone event. i'm dr. anthea m partake elizabeth mcmillan director of the museum and it's truly my privilege to be your host today. as we posthumously present the great americans medal to justice ruth bader ginsburg. thank you for joining us from all corners of the nation and perhaps even the world to witness this historic moment. the national museum of american history is located in the greater, washington dc area and we gratefully acknowledge the precedence of the piscataway pomonkey in our costume tribes and their descendants the chesapeake bay region is home to many indigenous people from all over the hemisphere. so wherever we are, let us acknowledge and give our respect and gratitude to native people's opportunity to work and to live in their territories. today, we honor justice ginsburg enduring impact on american history as a lawyer as a jurist as a trailblazer who fought to dismantle discrimination against defendants denied due process and equal protection under the law. we are deeply grateful to her children professor. jane see ginsburg and james ginsburg who joined us here today to accept the medal. on their mother's behalf. later in the program begins birds will donate artifacts reflecting the justices supreme court career and speak with me about their mothers rich and multi-partied legacy. we thank them so much for their extraordinary gifts to the american people. the great americans medal award program is supported by david m rubinstein. the medal struck in one point eight five ounces of fine gold is made possible by museum board member jeff garrett. the inspiration was the museum's rare double eagle coins the design by sculptor augustus, sanka don enlisted by president theodore roosevelt to design the twenty dollar gold piece. the metal features an american eagle was sun rays on the head side and the reverse side honors the museum star-spangled banner and the smithsonian's mission for the increase and diffusion of knowledge. we've asked other notable americans to help us pay tribute to justice ginsburg and her importance as a truly great american. please join me and watching this video. i'm honored to stand in the company of justice ruth bader ginsburg as a recipient of the smithsonian's great americans medal ruth bader ginsburg quite simply changed the way the world is for american women and she did it before she became a supreme court justice justice ginsburg was an equality and civil rights champion who fought tirelessly for a better tomorrow for more than a decade until her first judicial appointment in 1980. she led the fight in the courts for gender equality when she began her legal crusade women were treated by law differently from men thousands of state and federal laws restricted. what women could do barring them from jobs, right and even from jury service by the time she put on judicial robes though ruth ginsburg had brought a revolution ruth bader ginsburg believe that women had the rights and opportunity they could do anything and everything and she showed that in her own life. and of course she spent 27 years on the supreme court fighting for those rights for all of the rest of us and we're forever in her debt on the supreme court rbg wrote landmark opinions and fierce descents, and she did something others could never have imagined she became a feminist icon for girls and women of all ages and she did it in her 80s in one of our earliest cases that she argued against her supreme court was to argue for equal pay and equal benefits for military women at the time. we still had the whack the women's army corps and because of this ruling that she won i was able to serve on equal footing as men in my 23 years career in the national guard just as ruth bader ginsburg was a great american because she believed in this country her love for america was unwavering unyielding for all of her life. pittsburgh understood that we are americans without adjectives her belief and the founding documents. our constitution our bill of rights was resolute, but she understood that in order for justice to be fully inclusive in this country. there was work to do i had the great pleasure and privilege of working with her on some aclu cases and also a visiting her in her book lined office at the supreme court. there was never a moment when i did not trust her opinion on all that came before us in life and when she was not the best kind of teacher one who encourages and allows us to be our best selves as though i only met her once i felt a kinship with joseph skinbergs because of her passion for equality and justice i wasn't surprised when i found out we shared a passion for the play. and a powerful denunciation of hatred and bigotry expressed as an imaginary conversation between anne frank and emmett till. berg lifelong determination to fight injustice and intolerance for us here at the kennedy center. we love ruth also for her fervent belief in the arts and her consuming passion for opera which brought her to the kennedy center so often and led her from being a participant in the audience to a participant on the stage. justice ruth bader ginsburg was an inspiration to me. prism there's a saying meant to bring comfort when someone dies. it goes like this may their memory be a blessing may justice ginsburg's indelible legacy. shine bright in all our memories and remind us that the fight for justice is never easy. our strength courage and sense of justice created an impact for generations to come. we respect her we admire her and we love her. she was a great american with an amazing strength as my friend sally jenkins wrote. there was strength in her words strengthen her village. strength in her arguments it is the job of every single person to ensure her legacy lives on. thank you so much to all of our tribute participants. now join me in watching a video that traces the arc of justice ginsburg life through her appointment to the united states supreme court. we owe a special that of thanks to gloria steinem the justice's friend and partner in the fight for women's rights for her narration of this video. the great american's medal honors supreme court justice ruth bader ginsburg for her groundbreaking judicial work her fierce advocacy for gender equality and her extraordinary leadership in the quest for justice under law, whatever you choose to do leave tracks, and that means don't do just for yourself because in the end it's not going to be fully satisfying you will want to leave the world a little better for you having lived. ruth bader ginsburg was born at beth moses hospital in new york on march 15th. 1933. she grew up in a neighborhood of jewish immigrants in the flatbush section of brooklyn. her mother was deeply influential in her life, encouraging her ambition and her love for the arts. celia bader had been for drop out of school in order to put her brother through college. she wanted her daughter to have the opportunities that she had been denied. celia would pass away the day of ginsburg's high school graduation after a battle with cancer. i pray that i may be. all that she would have been. had she lived in an age. when women could aspire and achieve and daughters are cherished. as much as sons ginsburg attended cornell university graduating in 1954 at the top of her class at cornell. she met her husband martin ginsburg whom she affectionately called marty. he was the first boy i ever knew who cared that i had a brain they went in 1954 and were married for 56. years ginsburg had joined marty at harvard law school where she was one of nine women in a class of over 500 men when marty was diagnosed with cancer ginsburg helped him recover and graduate on time. all while completing her own degree requirements and caring for their toddler daughter jane. when her husband joined a new york law firm ginsburg transferred to colombia law school graduating in 1959. despite her achievements. she struggled to get hired. although recommended for a supreme court clerkship. she wasn't even offered an interview. a 1962 trip to sweden had a profound impact on her work. while doing legal research on gender equality. she witnessed a culture. are working women were the norm she would say that her thought processes were stimulated in sweden and she saw what needed to change in the states. this were going on to become a professor at rutgers law school. and her son james was born in 1965. in 1971 ginsburg co-founded the women's rights project at the american civil liberties union where she took on cases that saw to dismantle cultural gender-based restrictions and to provide gender equality under the law. her first major case read versus read she challenged an idaho statute that automatically gave preference to men for appointment as administrator of a deceased person's estate. and another early case maritz. commissioner of internal revenue took on the irs for denying a man a medical tax deduction to care for his elderly mother solely because of his gender. this landmark ruling was the first time that the supreme court held that a law providing differential treatment of men and women violates the 14th amendment. we wanted to say that the law should not pigeonhole people that man or woman should be able to do. whatever his or her talents. made right for that person. at the aclu she took part in 34 cases before the united states supreme court serving as lead council and six cases five of which she won. in 1980 ginsburg was pointed by president jimmy carter to the dc circuit court president bill clinton nominated her to serve as the nation's second female justice on the supreme court. she took the bench in 1993. justice ruth bader ginsburg understood that even in a democratic society fear and anger can sometimes cause us to tolerate thing. we should never tolerate except things. we should never accept. she believed that bigotry should never be accommodated that injustice can never be tolerable that abuse of basic human rights is always unacceptable. i argued cases before the united states supreme court and when the other justices would prefer to my clients as juveniles and delinquents. she used the word children. in 2012 when we were trying to challenge mandatory life without parole sentences imposed on. she made the contention to the state that they were advocating that some 14 year olds be thrown away. she had this ability to get people to understand what the truths are and i'm so privileged to be a part of celebrating her remarkable life. she encouraged me when we met years later to remember that sometimes you don't see what you're doing to kind of make a difference in the world, but you are making a different. she made an extraordinary difference and she absolutely should be honored as one of our great americans. it is my privilege to welcome our great friend and benefactor former smithsonian regent david m rubinstein. david is the co-founder and co-chairman of the carlisle group and he is so much more to that for all of us at the smithsonian. oh, i'm david rubinstein and i'm here to talk a little bit about ruth bader ginsburg a friend of mine and somebody i greatly admire a number of years ago. i work with the smithsonian to help create the great american series an award. that would be given to great americans for what they've done to help our country become a better country. these are people like madeline albright or colin powell and ruth bader ginsburg was to receive this award but shortly before she passed away. we were unable to actually have the ceremony. so as a result we are going to do this possumously, but that doesn't attract from the fact that she was an incredible american somebody i got to know over many many years from my work at the kennedy center where as chairman of the kennedy center. i would frequently introduce ruth bader games for who audience because she loved operas and she came frequently to the operas. always we'd get a standing ovation all the people. i've introduced over the years at the kennedy center presidents vice president secretaries of state foreign leaders. nobody ever got the ovation that ruth bader ginsburg did why is that just people recognize he changed the face of history. she made it possible for women to say. yes, we are entitled to and should receive equal rights because of her advocacy as a lawyer her work as a as a judge and as a justice for some 27 years he changed the course of history and for that we're all in her debt. it's my great regret that i don't have a chance any longer to introduce ruth bader ginsburg at kenny center or again to interview her, but i hope that all americans will read about her. we'll get to know her better or think about what she did and recognize that her legacy will live on for quite some time. and if anybody ever deserves the title great american it is ruth bader ginsburg. thank you david. and as david said we wish that justice ginsburg could be with us here today as she had planned before the pandemic precluded her from doing so and before her passing. we are thus eternally grateful to the justices daughter professor. jane see ginsburg anderson james ginsburg who are here to accept the great americans medal on their mother's behalf. i am so pleased now to introduce them. jane is the morton l. gen club professor lived a literary and artistic property law at columbia law school and the faculty director of columbia's chronican center for law media and the arts. james is the founder and president of the chicago-based classical label sidel records an innovative nonprofit label with the mission to produce and share recordings presenting the finest classical music performers and composers of greater, chicago. welcome to you both and thank you so very much for participating. thank you. thank you. thank you. i hope you and your families have been as well as possible. so now on to the award presentation justice ruth bader ginsburg truly was a great american and it is my extraordinary privilege to posthumously award her the museum's highest honor the great americans medal. please allow me to read the metal citation. the national museum of american history proudly presents the great american battle to ruth bader ginsburg for her groundbreaking judicial work or advocacy for gender equality and extraordinary leadership in a quest for justice under the law. for her intellect integrity courage dedication and belief in the beauty of the arts. and for inspiring generations of women and girls to carve our own paths. through these values and achievements as a brilliant jurist to work tirelessly to create a more just and compassionate future. she defines service at the highest level and thus embodied the true meaning of a great american. march 30th 2022 my brother james and i are honored and deeply moved to accept this posthumous award to our mother ruth bader ginsburg. and this this is the award. my remarks will address the first part of the citation that at the adjust read and james's will go to the second part. as a judge and a justice mother's judicial work was not groundbreaking in the sense of earth-shattering most judicial work evolves within the constraints of precedent and care for the integrity of the institution. what mother would call pathmarking opinions in fact build on common principles while showing the new directions toward which they can lead? sometimes when judicial colleagues go astray those opinions show congress the root to course correction as with her celebrated lily ledbetter decept. mother was a determined advocate for gender equality, but never so fierce as to lose sight of her own guidance to fight for the things that you care about but do it in a way that will lead others to join you. her quest for justice under law sought to achieve a more perfect union. by embracing all the people within we the people of the united states of america the second part of the metal citations preamble that was read a highlights. our mother's belief in the beauty of the arts and credits her with inspiring generations of women and girls to carve their own pets. is that belief and my parents' enthusiasm and sharing their love of music in particular? that led me to trace my own path. producer of classical recordings and head of a nonprofit with a mission to promote great classical musicians in my hometown of chicago. watching mom share her passionate love of opera has proven infectious not just for me but for everyone in her orbit as scores of former law clerks, for example attack mom is inspired so many women of all ages because they saw her blazing trails at a time when few had this other than the mommy track existed for most women. she defied the odds in thereby increased opportunities for all the women and girls who followed after she did this by breaking through stereotypes about what women could and could not do. showing how strong and capable the quote weaker sex truly was. by example, she showed that no matter how far away a dream may seem. there is a way to get there if you're willing to put the work in. i believe she also inspired generations of men myself included to become more equal sharers in the household and especially in the raising of children. thereby helping her life partners helping their life partners succeed in creating their own paths. thank you so much. jane and jim what a treat to have you here and what an honor ruth bader ginsburg inspired a nation a larger than life force of a woman who was always intentional and precise with her language famously saying you shouldn't use forwards when three would do and when asked how she wanted to be remembered. she said whatever you choose to do leave tracks. that means don't do it just for yourself. you will want to leave the world a little better. for your having lived well rpg you did just that you left the world a better place. please now let me introduce lisa kathleen gravity a curator of political history in the national museum of american history and a proud member of the smithsonian women's history initiative. thank you, anthea. i'm a curator of political history and that means that i spend my time thinking about how americans and particularly women interact with their government and their democracy how they participate influence agitate and effect change both from outside the system and inside the hall's power. story of ruth bader ginsburg illustrates all of that we were honored to visit justice ginsburg's supreme court chambers at the invitation of her family and select material for donation to the museum. we were there on the first monday in october the first day of the court's new year. timing was poignant and underscored our appreciation of the role that justice ginsburg played in all of our lives with her questions into sense. we selected material that reflects justice ginsburg's legal career including arguing cases before the supreme court that she would later join. the legacy of her more than 25 years as an associate justice her fight for equality for all americans. crusade for women's rights and her amazing. hold on the public imagination. this new collection will be used by curators for research exhibitions and digital outreach to tell the story of ruth bader ginsburg. the story of a strong and courageous woman who fought for an inspired millions the collection will have a broader interpretive life as well. the objects of justice ginsburg's life will be combined and juxtaposed with objects from national events and other american lives to help us tell stories that put american history in context. stories of women's rights of family life the women at work politics and law of americans coming together and americans dissenting. stories about the issues of equality rights and justice that we have adjudicated through the courts legislated in congress and pursued through activism and experienced in our daily lives. the donation will also help us explore how public figures can become touchstones for discussing and understanding these issues. some like ginsburg even becoming both popular culture celebrity and a feminist icon. it takes time for objects in a museum to go on exhibit. until then material from the ginsburg donation will be available online on the national museum of american history's website. it's american history.si.edu and will share them with the smithsonian american women's history initiative. i hope that justice skins for a good like she will be a part of the smithsonians ongoing commitment to women's history. now, please join me in watching this evening's second video focuses on justice ginsburg's role on the supreme court and look for a sneak peek at that new donation of objects that are joining the collection of your national museum of american history. here early in her supreme court career ginsburg wrote the majority opinion for several landmark cases including the court's seven to one opinion declaring the virginia military institute could no longer remain an all-male institution. stating that quote generalizations about the way women are estimates of what is appropriate for most women no longer justify denying opportunity to women whose talent and capacity place them outside the average description women seeking and fit for a vmi quality education cannot be offered anything less. ginsburg would say that her model on the bench was justice sandra day o'connor the best advice he gave me was when i had colorectal cancer and justice o'connor had had breast cancer. she was on the bench nine days after her surgery her advice was is typical of justice o'connor? now arrange your chemotherapy on fridays so that by monday you will be well enough to come to the court after sander left. i felt very lonely. and it was the wrong image for the school children particularly to come in and see this bench. with eight men and one very small woman. now i sit toward the center by virtue of seniority. justice kagan is up my left and just as sold to my art is at my right. we look like we're all over the bench. we're here to stay ruth bader ginsburg built a reputation for her area diet arguments even forming an unlikely friendship with conservative justice antonin, scalia. the two often had opposing views but bonded over their shared love for the opera. they frequently be found enjoying performances of the washington national opera at the kennedy center even sometimes as participants. as the court turned more conservative justice ginsburg became known for her powerful descents. and 2013 she wrote a scathing descent on the decision not to renew the voting rights. act stating quote hubris is a fit word for today's demolition of the voting rights act. it was ginsburg's carefully crafted descents that inspired the name notorious rbg and the viral fame that continues to this day. her famous descent collar is recognized across the nation as a symbol of her courage integrity and defense of equal justice under the law. the national museum of american history collection is honored to welcome significant artifacts to the national collections. including the descent collar through a generous donation by the ginsburg family. the ginsburg collection includes three other callers as well as a judicial robe that she often wore. justice ginsburg's storied career and impact our an indelible part of american history she served as a justice until her passing in september 2020. she was a woman of many firsts. and a feminist icon if you want to be a true professional you will do something outside yourself. that's what i a meaningful life is justice ruth bader ginsburg a brilliant jurist who worked tirelessly to create a more just and compassionate future with equal justice for all americans and now a great americans medal honoree. jane and jim the national museum of american history is honored to welcome into our political history collection significant artifacts that represent justice ruth bader ginsburg supreme court career. and as the nation's flagship history museum and steward of the national collections. we thank you so much for your generosity. as lisa kit kathleen said these objects will help us. tell more fully the complex history of the united states and your mother's connection to pivotal moments in women's history, especially the fight for gender equality at your national museum of american history. we believe that learning history is a necessity for civic health. it can inspire engage and challenge in order to help people understand that today's world is the result of a myriad of choices and actions made by individuals and communities across time. so let's spend a few minutes together talking about the highlights of this incredible donation that you and your family gave us and how they connect your mother's legacy and your memories of her. we are especially honored to welcome into the collections. just ginsburg's maison bosque judicial robe and four colors. her famous descent collar her white lace judicial color the majority collar and the polychrome tiled judicial collar. in a 2009 interview with the washington post. your mother said the standard robe is made for a man because it has a place for the shirt to show at a tie. so sandra day o'connor and i thought it should be appropriate if we included us part of our robe something typical of a woman. so, can you speak to the intentionality that your mother brought to her collars and choosing them? i think originally the idea was simply to have a compliment to men men's ties and the original jabo was part of the french lawyers outfit her her robe from meazon bosque, which is the principal supplier in in paris of lawyer where and judges robes is actually a lawyer's gown if i remember correctly is not a judges robe and the the jabo would be part of the the outfit. so it's earliest incarnation. it was just in a foreign import to complement the the men's haberdashery and then as as time went on she accumulated other callers, particularly, i guess. after 2013 with the advent of the notorious rbg tumbler, which is right a real public figure and then i fans started to send columns on a very regular basis mother's chambers assistant. kim mckenzie said that there would be weeks when they would get two or three colors a week from from people in the general public who appreciated her and then her staff would kind of sort through make the first cut through all these colors that kept arriving and then she would choose from among the callers that they had initially sorted and so from hundreds and hundreds of little down to a relative view. oh, that's why and we have a particular memories. yeah, one of the colors here one interesting thing is that she would assign roles to different colors. of course. there was a very famous descent color, which is in a very sort of heavy black and gray kind of dower demeanor to the collar that matched the that she would have to issue a descent. there's a much brighter majority opinion color, which i believe was a gift from her law clerks. i remember a particularly colorful one with a very southwest flavor that she was given in i was actually there when she was given it in santa fe her personal favorite was one another very colorful one that she got from cape town south africa. so these really made the wardrobe and also helped i think helped. um a journalists because they would see which color she walked into the courtroom with and know which way the case went. yeah, it's such a wonderful expression of especially women's. opinions at simultaneously of course madeleine albright is very famous for her roaches and pins and probably the most famous at least in a northern hemisphere may very well be queen elizabeth who chooses each and for which is by day by meeting and i love that connection of these remarkable women using that self-expression and i was able to see all of these materials after they had come into the museum last week and they are just truly truly remarkable and you're right that robe jane is so elegant with the turned velveteen on the sleeves and it felt like she she certainly had inhabited so it's wonderful. we also collected from you with our thanks an image of the 118th congress. um the president obama signing the lily ledbetter fair pay act of 2009 with his signature and maybe jam we can start with you again and jane share anything you'd like to kind of about that about that moment about the impact of president obama being the one to sign the the act in 2009 and of course just as a reminder the ledbetter versus goodyear tire and company the supreme court rule that lily ledbetter had waited too long to sue for paid discrimination justice ginsburg famously descented and called upon congress quote to correct. this court's parsimonious reading of title 7. her encouragement of lily ledbetter not to accept the supreme court's decision but to continue in activism resulted, of course in the legislation that effectively reversed the court's decision so that people could fight paid discrimination regardless. of the time limits so james, what did your mother think were the next steps when cases like ledbetter were wrongly decided in her opinion and she seemed to believe in her. so powerful and congress and the court systems of the classic checks and balances and believed in their capacity to create a more more equal america. so sharers share some thoughts on that for us. well, it depends on the type of case, of course if it's a constitutional decision, there's not much congress can do but in this case it was a statutory interpretation and a rather absurd one to say that because the first paycheck that discriminated was years ago. she was out of luck when in fact as mom wrote every new paycheck was a new form of discrimination and of course though, she had no way of knowing what was happening until much later. and in fact what congress did in that fair pay act is exactly that they basically put her into law and said yes every new discriminatory paycheck starts the clock again and the way she wrote the opinion. there was no doubt that that's what she wanted because she actually wrote the ball is now in congress's court. and the fact that the very first law signed by obama as president was this a lily ledbetter fair pay act, i think was just such a validation of what mom tried and in this case succeeded in doing absolutely. she left quite a trail of big maybe big bread crumbs, right? it wasn't it wasn't vague. yeah. see anything you wanted to add to that. no, i think james had it perfect. i'm the law professor, but doesn't matter. oh, i think we all are yeah. one of the one of the joys of this collection is this diversity from everything from the the reasons the regal robes to the popular culture items so many which your mom inspired and we have a sign poster from the 2018 movie on the basis of sex as part of the donation and the movie was written by your cousin, which is wonderful daniel steepleman. and so do the scenes as they are portrayed, especially if your family life mesh with your experiences for career and jane maybe as the elder child. can you start to kind of fill in some of your childhood experiences with someone who of course we revere as as the great rbg? well, i would say that the there's a lot of poetic poetic license taken in the movie all of which was fine with mother. i think she recognized that the the real facts were somewhat less dramatic than would be required for for hollywood. so for example, the the culminating scene in the courtroom it in denver where it her initial arguments well, and there's some discussion of maybe fathers should take the the rebuttal but she sort of stares them down. those back up to the podium and knocks it out of the court. well, that's particularly, very compelling and completely false right? there wasn't even a rebuttal in. in the case. yeah, and her argument it from the outset went just fine, but i'll be obviously that doesn't doesn't work quite so well in a movie. i remember discussing with my cousin. why did he depart so much from the facts and he said well in in a movie you have to you have to create tension. so even if they're there wasn't tension in real life you have to come up with some in the same thing in the movie about whether there was some discussion between my parents about maybe mother should take a back seat spend more time with the kids none of that in real life. the that's wonderful. you know, it's it's such an incredible opportunity though to mirror the fictionalized self with a lymph self and and that she embraced the kind of the in between and understood the artistry. is this wonderful. now james in general? add on anything that your big sister shared or speak to us, maybe about family dynamics and in your remarkable family. well the movie actually james being a bit modest here because she is a big role in the movie. in fact, her character is sort of an amalgam of the true. i think it's fair to say jane along with sort of a mom student figure who gets to, you know, learn all about what's going going on and and i am for me. i'm just a five year old brat running around the the apartment in the movie, but doesn't the story of the movie itself is just such a great example of how mom used examples of how sex discrimination could hurt men and the reason my dad was involved. it was actually a tax case. it was a deduction that was provided for women, but in almost all is not for for men. and she showed how discriminatory that was and i have to little shameless plug because the story of this case was actually the speech my father turned turned it into a really hilarious speech and my wife the soprano and composer patrice michaels turned that into a song as part of a song cycle about my mother that appears on the sadie records album notorious rbg and song. so if you want to hear the four-minute version with music of the same story, that's told on the basis of sex. i recommend this song on working together, which is the song actually done in my father's voice as part of a nine song cycle about my mother. most of the songs are actually based on family and since you mentioned the part about you know, the one once mom decided on her career path, there was no going back. but the one song in that cycle that's based on my grandfather. my father's father was the moment of hesitancy, my mother had about you know embarking on this because she had jane as a as a baby at this point and what she really ready to go to law school with all that and he actually and remember this is a man in the mid 1950s said ruth if you don't want to go to law school, you have the best reason in the world this baby, but if you really want to go you'll stop feeling sorry for yourself and find a way to do it. and that really became mom's mo for the rest of her life. that's some powerful advice. yeah, you come from a long line of wise people any other advice that she shared with you that you you both want to share with us. which we can learn. i think what i said earlier that and this again echoes her father-in-law's advice that there is a way to do it if you're willing to put the work in and i think mom more than anybody. put the work in and showed, you know how it could be done. and i think that's an certainly an inspiration to me and i think to many others. absolutely continues. so for all of us and i think everyone who's watching jay and any other good advice that she passed along to you. i that one shouldn't waste time looking back and thinking about how you might have done it differently. and yes forward. i call that the tyranny of regret. it's up there with some of the others. yeah, those are definitely words to live by there are wonderful items in this donation representing how much people loved her. and how much they admired her for her fight for gender racial marriage equality voting rights a woman's right to choose. there's an rbg bubblehead doll a fans tattoo design or just two of those objects and when she started to experience this really viral fame, what do you what do you remember her reactions were what were your reactions? what did she say when she's first saw the art for the for the rpg honorary tattoo or anything else that you would like to hear. i think at the beginning she was quite perplexed. for the tattoo, i think she was appalled. did not i prevent her from displaying a photograph of the tattoo, although i think it was displayed in her private bathroom in her chambers. so i guess that's having way. and but i think she i think she came to rather. enjoy her celebrity, although she certainly didn't didn't seek it out and think that a five foot three, probably more like one of grandmother from brooklyn was a likely object of all this adulation. and i think she definitely came to enjoy it and actually use it because of course these were the years of the descents and more and more. she was not going to be on the winning side of these important. constitutional and statutory cases, and i think she was able to use her notoriety as it were to make the public aware of what was going on. and of course the and and thus in like in some examples actually, you know get change from outside of the court, but as far as enjoying it, well, i have to i had i brought for show and tell that bobblehead actually comes with and without crowd so that was magnificent the crown of course a reference to the notorious. sorry image and knock off of the notorious b i g and i just think to that wonderful cnn documentary that was done about mom and my favorite scene in that is when she apparently for the first time gets to see kate mckinnon's caricature of her on saturday night live and we used to mom used to be more dour than she was in her later years. jane used to keep a book called mommy left because the instances were so rare, but in this one is you can see in that scene just uproarious laughter from mom at this caricature of her produced by kate mckinnon and is really enjoyed watch. well, that's wonderful. you know it seemed to me too. tracking her career as closely and now learning even more about her over these past number of years asleep since her death that she had been through so much as as a woman as a jurist as a justice the many many so many battles. she had fought that there was some of that loosening that kind of unwinding maybe of what had kept her so determined and she was able to still share that determination with so many and yet enjoy and relax in to and then to your point jim to really utilize her fame and her and i think she kind of seemingly always some slightly surprised and being used by just how much of a deal people made. oh, that's great. well, i mean it was you know to go to shows with her and when she would walk there will be a standing o people would literally get up and start cheering when she walked into the opera or there's the famous story in the show the relationship between my parents so well, too they were at the broadway show proof and this i think was right after bush v gore and when mom walked in the people started applauding and my father so whispered to her. i guess you didn't know there was a convention of tax lawyers in town. it doesn't suggest that it was actually for him at which prompted a nice sharp elbow to the design told. oh, that's wonderful. you also shared with us and it's now in the national collection about some marvelous artwork from the children's book descent. ruth bader ginsburg makes her mark. and so it's the classic i descent from justice scalia and then the retort. no i descent justice ginsburg replies and there of course friendship despite being on opposite side of the ideological and often juris prudence and political perspectives. the justices were of course famously friendly and of course bonded over opera. maybe speak to us a bit about this friendship and what it teaches us about your mother. maybe jane you can go first. a well one of her famous quotes is that one could disagree without being disagreeable and that was certainly true of their relationship. they really had a very deep and long-standing affection for many years. they would spend new years together. not just the four of them, but also many children a lot more on his side than that on ours, and it's time with buy some grandchildren as well at the new year's gatherings that my father would cook and occasionally justice scalia would shoot and kill the main course and sometimes requiring much advanced preparation. i my father would have tubs of marinade for the the wild boar or for what he referred to as bambi. and sometimes this was more successful than others. i think wild boar. he ultimately slipped in some regular domesticated pork in order to to make it consumable, but i think both families certainly appreciated the each other and then as to my mother and justice scalia in addition to their great love of opera, which i think james may save a few more a few more more things about i think they also really appreciated good writing and both of them wrote their opinions and both of them were a real sticklers for the right expression the the best way to capture the point in the fewest words, and i think that that's something that they appreciated in in each other and often they would improve each each other's drafts not by doing grabbatical line editing but by pointing out where the arguments were weaker or unpersuasive and thereby making each other's conflicting points of view better. i think the most progress obvious example of that was one of mom's most celebrated early majority opinions in the virginia military institute case were clear was the loan dissenter by rode a really blazing descent and didn't mom the favor of giving it to her early before anybody else saw it so she could address his points in her majority opinion and she used to say she ruined her weekend, but her opinion became much stronger as a result. so that was the kind of backup forth which of course data back to that they were actually on the dc court of appeals together even before they were on the supreme court. so it was a very long-standing collegial relationship. and of course then speaking i mentioned that song cycle earlier. well, this is memorialized in an operetta called scalia ginsburg in scalia comes first because of seniority i should note which is very using kind of pastiche mom does her entrance through by crashing through a glass ceiling, of course. and the idea in the opera is that supposedly these two should be pitted against each other, but in fact, they they actually work together and when the other character in the opera is befuddled by this they they explain that in a duet at the end. we are different. we are one that well they're different they have differing views of how to interpret the constitution. they are one in the reverence board and for in their reference for the institution of the court itself, and and so in fact, they can be one even if they have opposite judicial and political philosophies. and that's beautifully beautifully said and and remembered and now of course commemorated so i can't wait to hear that song cycle. um, i'd like to what the composer of the opera is is derek lang who is a composer and also a lawyer so he actually got got the idea of writing a scalia ginsburg when he was in law school reading their opinions and thinking that they actually read like opera libretti. that that was started start of it and it has gone through several iterations. i and i believe it's going to be performed at one of the summer opera festivals this year having been performed in prior years as well. now that's wonderful and how look obviously how literate and be an exquisite their writings were to be of operatic quality. that's great. for for my last question, i'd like you please and of course with my gratitude to reflect upon. your mother's remarks upon her nomination to the supreme court in 1993 and maybe share a bit if you will on how you experience this incredible historic moment as a family and i'll just read a few brief excerpts here. she said the announcement the president just made is significant, i believe because it contributes to the end of the days when women at least have the talent pool in our society up here in high places only as a one at a time performers. recall that when president carter took office in 1976. no woman had ever served on the supreme court. and then one more quote. today justice sandra day o'connor graces the supreme court bench and close to 25 women serve at the federal court of appeals level two as chief judges. i am confident that more will soon join them. and then she goes on to say my daughter. jane reminded me a few hours ago and a good luck call from australia of assigned of the change that we have had had the good fortune to experience. in our high school yearbook and her graduation in 1973 the listing for james ginsburg was under ambition and her ambition was to see her mother appointed to the supreme court. the next line read if necessary. jane will appoint her. jane is so pleased your mother continued mr. president that you did. not that you did it instead and her brother. james is too. so jane, do you remember that that moment when you when you talk to your mom you were in australia? yes, i was was actually teaching in australia where i it be antipodes. it was winter while it was summer in in washington and i had no idea that this was coming because when i left the country it had seemed that there were other potential nominees who were getting much more play in in the press and i had i called home just to check in and my husband said so clinton has announced his nominee. do you know who it is? and i said is it cuomo and mario? he said no is it i think bruce babbitt was another leading here. he revealed that it. in fact ruth bader ginsburg, which was obviously a fantastic surprise which led to 15 minutes of fame for me in australia quite derivatively and also my son was with me and he created a kind of a comic strip which he titled. my grandmother is very special and that at the congrat the hearings the senate judiciary committee. oh, that's beautiful and james you were there. so what was it like in person? just amazing. to be there where i was there for of course. that was the rose garden ceremony and it it took a while to sink in that you know that with because there was a lot of in the press back and forth. would it be this person would it be that person and to later learn the story of how apparently mom just wowed clinton when they finally had lunch together was was great, but i was thinking about what you were reading from her remarks and this reminds me of a later remark mom made which people found a little bit shocking but i think it's so procreate. she was later asked. well how many women you know should there, you know, when when will there be enough women on that? when will there be enough women on this recording? mom said when there are nine and you know when you think about it people, you know people were kind of shocked by that one what you want really what nine women on the court, but of course nobody was shocked for scent that decades. person decades when there were nine men on the court. so i think that made the point very nicely about you know, how our expectations need need to change and how you know, we're living in a very different world than than the one that existed even just when she was nominated. now we have i think her if i was at about 200 years of all mail. yeah, all white male just as a supreme court. yeah, that's that's a great a great way to end and i am i'm so grateful. thank you, jenny, and thank you jim and thank you, david and thanks to all of you who have joined us on this very special occasion. video from this event will be available on the great americans youtube channel and the website at great americans.si.edu. and at your national museum of american history, our mission is to empower people to create a more just and compassionate future by exploring preserving and sharing the complexity of our past. we hope that like us you take
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