The student news site of Peddie School

The Peddie News

The student news site of Peddie School

The Peddie News

The student news site of Peddie School

The Peddie News

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Students Hear Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Speak

By Rachel S.
Editor-in-Chief

Eighteen students traveled to hear Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg speak about her experiences serving on the Supreme Court at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Sept. 6. Appointed in 1993, Ginsburg was the second female Supreme Court Justice after Sandra Day O’Connor and is known as the liberal wing of the court. During the talk she touched on issues such as gender equality, abortion rights and same sex marriage as well as her relationship with Associate Justice of the Supreme Court Antonin Scalia.

“I really liked how she discussed specific issues like gender equality and voting rights,” Megan Mooney ’14 said. “She connected past issues like African-American voting rights after the Thirteenth Amendment with the present state of minority discrimination in voting practices. She also brought up specific cases like the Lily Ledbetter case and a few about abortion.”

The Ledbetter case, in which Lily Ledbetter sued because of discriminatory pay practices under the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, was rejected by the Supreme Court. Ginsburg had been in charge of delivering the dissent, and her argument paved the way for the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which passed in 2009 and reversed the Supreme Court’s decision.

“Justice Ginsburg spent a long time talking about the Ledbetter case,” Simona Newman-Ladjen ’15 said. “I didn’t know anything about it beforehand, but now I know how influential Ginsburg was in the decision. I think that’s a really good example of one of the many times she stood up to fight discrimination.”

Ginsburg also spoke of her relationship with Scalia, who is known to be politically conservative. Ginsburg noted that because they are on different sides of the political spectrum, many people expect them to be enemies. However, despite their generally opposing views, they have written many dissents together, and respect each other’s opinions.

“One of the most interesting topics she talked about was her relationship with Justice Scalia,” Jonathan Karch ’14 said. “People often point out their opposing dissents. It was interesting to hear how much they actually agreed. She even used the term genial to describe their relationship. This is a great example of how people with opposing views can do their work, but once the work day is over they can reconcile and be friends. More politicians should strive to be like this.”

“It was an incredible experience to hear from a woman who is entrenched in the creation of history through precedence,” Anna Piwowar ’14 said. “It was an honor to be in the presence of such a pivotal person.”

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