Bill Text: NJ SR94 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges Rutgers, The State University to memorialize United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg by naming a building on campus after her.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Passed) 2021-02-19 - Filed with Secretary of State [SR94 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-SR94-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator NIA H. GILL
District 34 (Essex and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Urges Rutgers, The State University to memorialize United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg by naming a building on campus after her.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Senate Resolution urging Rutgers, The State University to name a building in honor of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Whereas, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, only the second woman to ever be appointed to the United States Supreme Court, was a legal trailblazer whose tireless advocacy against gender discrimination paved the way for women's equality under the law and for women's rights to be seriously addressed by the courts and society; and
Whereas, Justice Ginsburg's death on September 18, 2020, marked the passing of a civil rights luminary who will be remembered as a legal giant for her work as a Justice on the United States Supreme Court, a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, a trailblazing litigator for equal rights and justice, and a law professor at Columbia University and Rutgers University Law School; and
Whereas, One of her most notable majority opinions delivered during her tenure on the Supreme Court came in the case of United States v. Virginia in which the court struck down the Virginia Military Institute's male-only admissions policy and established a new standard of review for sex discrimination cases; and
Whereas, Justice Ginsburg counted among her proudest achievements, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 which was passed in reaction to her blistering minority opinion in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, the 2007 Supreme Court ruling that said Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 imposed strict time limits for bringing workplace discrimination suits. Justice Ginsburg in dissent called on Congress to overturn the decision, and it did; and
Whereas, Justice Ginsburg was considered a champion of progressive causes on the Supreme Court, and although she may perhaps be most renowned for her work in civil and women's rights, her liberalism extended to all areas of the law, including criminal procedure, civil liberties, and economic disputes; and
Whereas, Justice Ginsburg's interest in addressing gender discrimination in the law and her journey to becoming a pioneer in women's legal rights began during her time as a faculty member of the Rutgers Law School in Newark, where she served from 1963 to 1972; and
Whereas, Justice Ginsburg, in fact, has credited Rutgers University students in sparking her interest in women's legal rights and aiding in the course she then pursued; and
Whereas, During her time at Rutgers Law School, Justice Ginsburg was an inspiration to many women law school students and served as the inaugural advisor to the Women's Rights Law Reporter, the first law journal in the United States focused on issues of gender equality and justice; and
Whereas, One way in which Justice Ginsburg's roots at Rutgers Law School and her countless contributions to the United States' judicial landscape can be honored in this State is by naming a building on the Rutgers University campus in her honor; and
Whereas, The action of naming a building after Justice Ginsburg will serve to commemorate her legacy as a path breaking champion of women's rights and a leading figure in the history of the Supreme Court; and
Whereas, Such a commemoration will further serve as a reminder to generations of students, faculty, and staff that, in order to honor Justice Ginsburg's life fighting for the equality of all people, more must be done to carry on her legacy; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:
1. This House respectfully urges Rutgers, The State University to name a building on the university's campus after United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, to honor and memorialize her roots as a faculty member at Rutgers Law School from 1963 to 1972 and the groundbreaking legal achievements she accomplished throughout her career, most notably her work to advance women's rights and address gender discrimination.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the Board of Governors, the Board of Trustees, and the President of Rutgers, The State University.
STATEMENT
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, only the second woman to ever be appointed to the United States Supreme Court, was a legal trailblazer whose tireless advocacy against gender discrimination paved the way for women's equality under the law and for women's rights to be seriously addressed by the courts and society. Justice Ginsburg's death on September 18, 2020, marked the passing of a civil rights luminary who will be remembered as a legal giant for her work as a Justice on the United States Supreme Court, a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, a trailblazing litigator for equal rights and justice, and a law professor at Columbia University and Rutgers Law School.
Justice Ginsburg's interest in addressing gender discrimination in the law and her journey to becoming a pioneer in women's legal rights began during her time as a faculty member of the Rutgers Law School in Newark, where she served from 1963 to 1972. Justice Ginsburg has credited Rutgers University students in sparking her interest in women's legal rights and aiding in the course she then pursued. During her time at Rutgers Law School, Justice Ginsburg was an inspiration to many women law school students and served as the inaugural advisor to the Women's Rights Law Reporter, the first law journal in the United States focused on issues of gender equality and justice.
This resolution urges Rutgers University to memorialize Justice Ginsburg's roots at Rutgers Law School and her legacy as a path breaking champion of women's rights by naming a building on the university's campus in her honor. Such a commemoration will serve as a reminder to generations of students, faculty, and staff that, in order to honor Justice Ginsburg's life fighting for the equality of all people, more must be done to carry on her legacy.
