Description
Book SynopsisRuth Bader Ginsburg's last book is a curation of her own legacy, tracing the long history of her work for gender equality and a more perfect Union. In the fall of 2019, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg visited the University of California, Berkeley School of Law to deliver the first annual Herma Hill Kay Memorial Lecture in honor of her friend, the late Herma Hill Kay, with whom Ginsburg had coauthored the very first casebook on sex-based discrimination in 1974. Justice, Justice Thou ShaltPursue is the result of a period of collaboration between Ginsburg and Amanda L. Tyler, a Berkeley Law professor and former Ginsburg law clerk. During Justice Ginsburg's visit to Berkeley, she told her life story inconversation with Tyler. In this collection, the two bring together that conversation and other materialsmany previously unpublishedthat share details from Justice Ginsburg's family life and long career. These include notable briefs and oral arguments, some of Ginsburg's last speeches, and her favorite opinions that she wrote as a Supreme Court Justice (many in dissent), along with the statements that she read from the bench in those important cases. Each document was chosen by Ginsburg and Tyler to tell the story of the litigation strategy and optimistic vision that were at the heart of Ginsburg's unwavering commitment to the achievement of a more perfect Union. In a decades-long career, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an advocate and jurist for gender equality and for ensuring that the United States Constitution leaves no person behind. Her work transformed not just the American legal landscape, but American society more generally. Ginsburg labored tirelessly to promote a Constitution that is ever more inclusive and that allows every individual to achieve their full human potential. As revealed in these pages, in the area of gender rights, Ginsburg dismantled long-entrenched systems of discrimination based on outdated stereotypes by showing how such laws hold back both genders. And as also shown in the materials brought together here, Justice Ginsburg had a special ability to appreciate how the decisions of the high court impact the lived experiences of everyday Americans. The passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in September 2020as this book was heading into production was met with a public outpouring of grief. With her death, the country lost a hero and national treasure whose incredible life and legacy made the United States a more just society and one in which We the People, for whom the Constitution is written, includes everyone.
Trade Review"Even if you've read Ginsburg's memoir or seen the biopic
On the Basis of Sex, this book will offer new insight into her storied career—and its lingering impact on the American legal system. . . . As Ginsburg said, 'Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.' We'll be joining her, once again, in the pages of this book." * O, The Oprah Magazine *
"Anyone needing more reasons to admire Ruth Bader Ginsburg (1933-2020) will find them in this inspiring collection of speeches (all previously unpublished), briefs, oral arguments, dissenting opinions, and a candid conversation with Tyler, a professor at the Berkeley School of Law who served as Ginsburg’s law clerk during the 1999 term. . . . An informative perspective on a tireless advocate for fairness and equity." * Kirkus Reviews *
“Because each of Ginsburg’s words is so meaningful, this volume feels like a final gift. . . . Ginsburg inscribed herself into American history with the shining conviction of her vision of a more perfect union, expressed in her powerfully and deliberately chosen words. Working until the very end, she was determined to leave us this final anthology, and all of her words are significant.” -- Jeffrey Rosen, * Washington Post *
Table of ContentsPreface: Amanda L. Tyler
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Amanda L. Tyler
Herma Hill Kay Memorial Lecture
Ruth Bader Ginsburg the Advocate
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice, Supreme Court of the United States
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Recent Speeches
Afterword: Amanda L. Tyler
Timeline: The Life of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
