Ruth Bader Ginsburg's mother died of cervical cancer one day before RBG graduated high school, and in 1993, when she accepted her spot on the Supreme Court, RBG said, "I pray that I may be all that (my mother) would have been had she lived in an age when women could aspire and achieve and daughters are cherished as much as sons." Suffice it to say, she absolutely was all that her mother could have — and would have! — been, and it's this legacy that has mothers and daughters reacting to RBG's death with reverence and gratitude.
I have two little girls, and the news of RBG's death at 87 last night made my stomach drop. The loss is devastating in so many ways to so many people, but I know I'm not alone in feeling a deep sadness because of my two little girls. RBG changed the status quo. She shook things up. She demanded equality for all, despite not receiving it herself when she was younger. She had to find the balance between work and motherhood, and never took either of them for granted. She was everything a woman could ever hope or want to be, and she did it because of us. She did it for us. For her mother who couldn't, and for the little girls who needed her.
And millions of mothers and daughters around the country know it. These tweets made me cry because they so succinctly describe the relationship we all feel that we have with RBG. She is our protector, our leader, our guiding light — and the reason we're all able to be who we are.
1She Moved Us Forward
Senator Duckworth, who was elected in 2016, speaks for all of us here. And Duckworth knows better than most what it's like to be a woman — and a mother — in politics, so her testimony to RBG's work for justice and equality can't be ignored.
2She Inspired Us To Dream Big
Joe Biden's granddaughter Naomi Biden penned this tweet of gratitude in the few moments after news broke that RBG died, and it just about broke me. There's always a lot of talk about inspiring women and doing what you can, but RBG really is the top of the top. Four battles with cancer, and still she fought. I think we can take up that kind of power and grit, too.
3Girl Power
In the '90s, I was obsessed with the Spice Girls and their girl power anthem. RBG really embodied that kind of girl power we were all shouting about at sleepovers.
4May All The Little Girls Know Her Name
Phew, this tribute to RBG is something else. Whether our girls want to be lawyers or mothers or not doesn't matter — we want them to fight for equality like RBG, and to feel confident doing it.
5We Take Up The Fight
For older daughters, it's now time for parents to step up and take over. We can not let our girls feel alone or lost without RBG. We must continue this legacy.
6Her Work Spans Generations
When you think about your own mother and your future grandchildren, and all the women that came before and after, it's impossible not to see how RBG has influenced their lives.
7Let Us Shape The World
RBG is gone, but her work doesn't have to be.
8Our Daughters' Lives
How anyone could look at their daughters and not see the enormous way their future has been shaped by RBG, I don't understand.
9Keep Teaching
I had a lot of books about strong women, but nothing like the collection my own children have. The more we can read to our daughters about RBG and the women she influenced, the better.
10More Secure
It does feel like Justice Ginsburg was a pseudo-mother to so many of us. She brought comfort, she brought strength, and she brought security.
11Our Daughters' Futures Are At Stake
Now is not the time to get caught up in whether Joe Biden was your first choice or not. Remember RBG, and remember the rights and future of all the little girls counting on us. The ones RBG has spent a lifetime protecting.
12It's So Much
Her legacy is just astounding. How can we convey what she means?
13Gratitude
Her quotes, her work — it all means so much to so many of us, and our gratitude is overwhelming.
14So That Our Daughters Didn't Have To
You know, it seems that each generation of women has done a little more for the next generation of women than the last. And it will all just keep snowballing and snowballing, and it's up to us to make sure our daughters keep that going.
15There Will Never Be Another
Seriously, my mind can't comprehend the ripple effect of RBG. All the lives she touched and shaped because of her own passion for equality. It's truly amazing.
16All The Little Girls Of The World
There is no one who can deny the incredible life of RBG. No one.
17The Gold Standard
I was absolutely influenced by so many women as a child, and I hope my own little girls feel the weight of RBG as their own inspiration.
18Thank You
She's like a superhero, but better.
19Good Care Of Her
Author Irin Carmon, who wrote Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, saw her in December 2019 to tell her she was pregnant. And RBG wanted to make sure her husband was still taking care of her, ugh. RBG has talked openly about her marriage to her husband Marty and how they were such a team, and it's such a healthy, inspiring thing for our girls to see.
20One Day You Could Be Her
One day you could, girls. One day you could.
