Lessons from RBG
Michael Hirsh
We live in a time of great conflict and controversy. Passions are high on every side of every issue. Consensus is near impossible under these current conditions. We have heard a lot about the dying wishes of Ruth Bader Ginsburg wanting to have her replacement picked after the 11/3 election. Of course, I would love to see this wish honored, but that may be out of our hands. I would prefer to honor her memory differently. I think the best way to honor her is to mirror her behavior and embrace her philosophy of debate.
We have to channel the inner spirit of RBG.
Justice Ginsberg always had strong opinions and frequently was arguing with people to which she was diametrically opposed. She was iconic in so many ways. What made her unique and so admirable was that she engaged in these legal these debates with a gentility that did not lessen her laser focus or ferocity. She knew she was frequently the odds-on favorite to lose her argument.
It’s her dissenting or opposition opinions that probably had the most influence. But whether she was in the minority or majority side she did not insist that the other justices leave the court and be canceled. Instead you can find photographic evidence that shows her lunching, exercising, communing with Justices Scalia, Alito, Thomas, and more recently Gorsuch and Kavanaugh.
Her legacy will be one of fierce liberalism but also of civility and respect for opposing opinion — even if it was anathema to her. That’s what has been missing in our current discourse on so many issues from wearing masks to BLM issues.
Opposition and conflict should not mean ouster and ostracism.
Moving forward, let’s make this our take home life lesson gifted to us by this diminutive GIANT.
Michael Hirsh, MD is the the Medical Director for the Department of Public Health for the City of Worcester and six surrounding towns. He is a pediatric surgeon and Director of the Pediatric Trauma and Injury Prevention Program at UMass Memorial Medical Center. He serves as the Assistant Vice Provost for Health and Wellness Promotion for the three graduate schools within the School of Medicine.
