I come to you today to ask you to watch carefully
for the gradual reawakening.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Yes, Ann, it is I, come back to say I told you so. Never did I appreciate that trait in my colleagues, but today I want to say for all to hear that the Constitution of the United States will stand, not only the test of time and evolving interpretations, but that it will triumph over all the obstacles that have been thrown in its way by those who act to corrupt its essential purpose. It is happening now, steps forward, steps back ,but inch by precious inch we move ahead, for its power cannot be long denied.
Even those who created it had no idea of its force, its elemental energy. Indeed, many who put such power into language did not live according to its dictates. But somehow, they stated the fundamental principle of human existence that all men are created equal and, therefore, all loved by their Creator.
True, the drafters offered only what they could see with their limited vision which was that all white men were created equal, never mind the rest of the human race. But time has expanded that definition, and the current attempt to retract its scope will not endure.
You have wondered, Ann, at my quick turnaround when I came through to you so soon after my passing. I had much to work to do in my life review, but I was allowed to bring messages of hope regarding our democracy in the face of attempts – some successful - to subvert the rule of law to the prevailing winds of power.
I come to you today to ask you to watch carefully the gradual reawakening, a slow and even sheepish return to the guiding principles of our Constitution. Not all at once, sometimes in asides that eventually become prevailing doctrine , sometimes in a resounding statement of truth. But whether the pace is halting or immediate, we will be brought back on course into the light of equality before the law and out from under the tyranny of the few.
It will take time, but justice is a mighty river. Look for the little streams that start to flow from each return to the fundament truth that all men and women, no matter their differences, are created equal. Not in shape, language, talent, abilities, or circumstance, but in their fundamental right to be.
It will happen. It is happening. Add your voice and watch it grow.
February 11, 2024