Here are 10 of the most insightful quotes attributed to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and the logic behind them.
1. On Time and Memory
Frankly I had thought that at the time Roe was decided, there was concern about population growth and particularly growth in populations that we don’t want to have too many of.
The Meaning: Time is treated as something you cannot store—only spend. The meaning is that urgency and patience are both strategies; the quote asks which one matches the stakes. If you feel rushed, check whether the deadline is real or inherited.
2. On Clarity
Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
3. On Courage
Q: From your point of view, does having another woman on the court matter primarily in terms of the public’s perception, or also for what it feels like to be in conference and on the bench?
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
4. On Perspective
Abortion prohibition by the State, however, controls women and denies them full autonomy and full equality with men. That was the idea I tried to express in the lecture to which you referred.
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
5. On Hope and Vision
Q: At your confirmation hearings in 1993, you talked about how you hoped to see three or four women on the court. How do you feel about how long it has taken to see simply one more woman nominated?
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
6. On Creativity
Q: We started by talking about the idea of three or four women on the Supreme Court. Could you imagine a Supreme Court that had five or six or seven women on it?
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
7. On Thought and Judgment
If you have a caring life partner, you help the other person when that person needs it. I had a life partner who thought my work was as important as his, and I think that made all the difference for me.
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
8. On Action
It is essential to woman’s equality with man that she be the decisionmaker, that her choice be controlling. If you impose restraints that impede her choice, you are disadvantaging her because of her sex.
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
9. On Thought and Judgment
This way of thinking reflects ancient notions about women’s place in the family and under the Constitution — ideas that have long since been discredited.
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
10. On Growth
As this Court said in Mississippi University for women against Hogan some 14 years ago state actors may not close entrance gates based on fixed notions concerning their roles and abilities of males and females.
The Meaning: This line from Ruth Bader Ginsburg compresses a lived tension into a single readable moment. Read it slowly: it is not asking you to agree, but to notice where the same pattern shows up in your own life. If you take it seriously, it becomes a test—what would you change if this were reliably true for you?
