Get the free declaration of indigency form

[APPLAUSE] JUSTICE GINSBURG: Thank you, for that. Thank you. Oh, please, sit down. MARTHA MINOR: Hello, everybody. We're a little late, because Justice Ginsburg actually has a day job. And she actually got a call and needed to be involved in it. But we are thrilled beyond words that you are here. I don't need to really spend much time on the introduction. I don't think I will. Furthermore, I will say this, that there are very few people who have ever been appointed to the United States Supreme Court whose career beforehand was as distinguished the career afterwards. And that is true of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I also just want to say, personally, that I had the great privilege of getting to know Justice Ginsburg a little when she first joined the Court of Appeals in Washington, DC. And a few years later, I got a call from Justice Ginsburg saying, are you a member of the ABA? And I said, yeah. She said, well, then I'm going to support you for something. And she has done that for me, as she has done for so many others. So a whole other story about Justice Ginsburg is her mentorship, particularly of women. And for that, I am very deeply and personally grateful. On the wall of her chambers is a sign that says, “Justice, justice thou shalt pursue,” the Old Testament words. And we're going to pursue, actually, a little of your autobiography. But some justice might appear, as well. Justice Ginsburg, you grew up in Brooklyn, New York. And it was a community of poor working class people. Is it true that you were involved in a twirling squad? What are your memories of your time there? JUSTICE GINSBURG: Yes, Martha, it is true that I was a twirler at James Madison High School. And what that meant is that we had to perform at every football game. MARTHA MINOR: Oh, wow. JUSTICE GINSBURG: I learned to hate football as a result of freezing. [LAUGHTER] But I marched in a few parades in the city. And that was fun. MARTHA MINOR: Some people remembered you as a very popular student, and also as a very brilliant student. And it's true, I think, isn't it, that your mother gave you some advice, who you sadly lost before your graduation. She said something like, you should be a lady, but you should also be independent. JUSTICE GINSBURG: Yes. MARTHA MINOR: Is that right? And so, was the idea of having a career something you had in your mind when you went off to college? JUSTICE GINSBURG: Yes, I was going to be high school history teacher. I had no aspirations then to be a lawyer, because women couldn't make a living practicing law. But teaching was a field where women were accepted, and there was a nice, steady income. So yes, I was going to be independent. And what my mother meant by “be a lady,” was not to be haughty. But a lady doesn't get disturbed by things that maybe are off-putting. She reacts calmly, without anger. And she has nothing to do with an emotion that's terribly draining on your time, and you can't do anything about, and that's jealousy. So that's...