The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a trailblazer for women's rights, has left many inspired and ready to continue the work championed by the late justice, including Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the National Women's Law Center.
"I will keep her memory with me as we forge extraordinary fights ahead and I am, again, buoyed by her last words, which to me are a meaningful and real reminder that the best way to respect her legacy is to fight for this court and this institution," Graves told Cheddar, referring to reports that Ginsburg requested she not be replaced on the Court until the next president is sworn in. Despite the wish, Republicans are planning to move forward quickly.
For Graves, her own mission and life's work, she said, would not be at all possible without Ginsburg's efforts in court.
"The National Women's Law Center as an organization would not have existed but for that landmark Reed decision that Justice Ginsburg argued," she stated.
In the case of Reed v. Reed, as then-head of the Women's Rights Project at the ACLU, Ginsburg successfully argued that not appointing a woman as the administrator of an estate solely based on sex was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court decision in the case led the way for other gender discrimination cases and subsequent changes to hundreds of laws that discriminated against women.
Graves said that while Ginsburg's death was felt immensely across many demographics, the loss is particularly hard for female lawyers.
"She is an icon broadly, but for women lawyers in this country and for those who deeply understand justice and what it means, she's really a hero," she continued.
Ginsburg was known for using her judicial platform to acknowledge legal difficulties faced by the disenfranchised and underrepresented, often pointing out to her peers, particularly on the Supreme Court, that their decisions have real-life consequences.
"People saw her as a champion for real people at the Court. And she ensured that the Court didn't seem too disconnected, including in her very last term," Graves explained.
While the justice may have been 87 years old, the impact of her work, according to Graves, is even connecting with children.
"There are drawings and flowers and art in her memory and people are coming and using it as an opportunity to tell their children not only about Justice Ginsburg and her life but about her legacy. Her legacy for justice and her legacy for the people," she said.
During the pandemic, student loan debt repayment was put on pause amid an unprecedented crisis. However, on February 1, 2022, the schedule is set to resume, and currently it looks as though the Biden administration has no plans to extend it. Cody Hounanian, the executive director of the Student Debt Crisis Center, spoke to Cheddar about why he believes the loan collection pause needs to at least be extended as borrowers are still struggling with the resurgent pandemic and inflation. "There's really no good economic or policy or political reason as far as why they're focused on getting payments started now," Hounanian said. "We surveyed 33,000 people with student loans last month. Nine out of 10 told us that they are not ready to resume payments."
As the 2022 midterm elections fast approach, here are some politicians Americans should be on the lookout for. Democratic Massachusetts state senator Sonia Chang-Diaz, who was the first Latina and Asian American woman to be elected to the state's senate, now has her eye on the governorship with Republican Charlie Baker leaving. New Jersey GOP candidate for Congress, Billy Prempeh also bears watching, and while Boston's newest mayor, Democrat Michelle Wu, was already sworn in last month, all eyes will be on Beantown as the first woman and first person of color to hold the office tries to usher in a new era for the city.
Emily Hoeven, newsletter editor at CalMatters, joins Cheddar News to discuss California Governor Gavin Newsom's gun law modeled after Texas's abortion law.
Chuck Rocha, host of 'Nuestro' podcast and opinion contributor at The New York Times, joins Cheddar News to discuss why Democrats are losing Hispanic voters.
More businesses are requiring workers to return to the office, but there is concern that many employees in the middle class, especially women and people of color, need remote work options for reasons including childcare and financial security. Joan Williams, director of the Center for WorkLife Law at the University of California, joined Cheddar to discuss why office mandates could be detrimental to the middle class. She noted that while companies claim a return to offices would help foster more collaboration and efficiency, reports show that they are successfully able to do their jobs from home.
The U.S. postal service has confirmed that it secretly developed and tested a blockchain-based mobile voting system ahead of the 2020 election. Susan Greenhalgh, senior advisor on election security, Free Speech for People, joins Cheddar News to discuss the cybersecurity complications of a mobile voting system.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled to allow the controversial Texas abortion law to remain in effect, banning abortion at six weeks and allowing any private citizen to sue a person or doctor aiding or abetting someone seeking an abortion. Outraged at this decision, California Governor Gavin Newsom is working to draft a proposal in line with the law as it relates to guns. Shawn Hubler, California correspondent at the New York Times, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
