Ruth Bader Ginsburg Sadly Goes “White Feminist” over Kaepernick’s Protests
By April Jones
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg called the silent protest Colin Kaepernick began “dumb and disrespectful” in an interview with Katie Couric.
It’s been several weeks since NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick first chose to sit during the playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner” before the start of every San Francisco 49ers game. In the time since he first began his protest, other NFL players followed suit. Some chose to stand with their fist in the air while others chose to kneel instead. Across the country, players in other sports and some at college and high school levels have also joined the silent protest by kneeling.
There have been a lot of heated debates about whether this type of protest is appropriate. Celebrities have weighed in, Facebook friends have been deleted, jerseys have been burned. The latest high-profile figure to throw in their two cents is Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, often referred to as Notorious RBG, thanks to a best-selling book using that title.
In an interview posted on Yahoo! News, Katie Couric asked Ginsburg what she thought of the protests Kaepernick started to which Ginsburg replied “What do I think? I think it’s really dumb of them. Would I arrest them for it? No.”
"“I think it’s dumb and disrespectful. I would have the same answer if you asked me about flag burning. I think it’s a terrible thing to do, but I wouldn’t lock a person up for doing it. I would point out how ridiculous it seems to me to do such an act. It’s dangerous to arrest people for conduct that is not — doesn’t jeopardize the health or well-being of other people.”"
When asked for clarification of her comment, she responded “Yes. If they want to be stupid, there’s no law that should be preventive. If they want to be arrogant, there’s no law that prevents them from that. What I would do is strongly take issue with the point of view that they are expressing when they do that.”
Oct 6, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers outside linebacker Eli Harold (58), quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) and free safety Eric Reid (35) kneel in protest during the playing of the national anthem before a NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals at Levi
Obviously someone with as much legal knowledge and judicial experience, particularly when it comes to constitutional rights, as Justice Ginsburg would know that arresting Kaepernick and others for this type of peaceful protest is illegal and unconstitutional. There’s really no reason to give her credit for adding that she wouldn’t arrest anyone for it when most of us are fully aware that she couldn’t anyway.
It’s disappointing to hear this opinion coming from someone who is held up to be a feminist icon and an advocate for the oppressed. But, as many intersectional feminists have noted, this is typical of something that would be considered White Feminism — capital W, capital F — a brand of feminism that doesn’t address racial issues. Racial issues, specifically police brutality and the killing of black men and women at the hands of police, is the core of these silent protests. The fact that a Supreme Court Justice would so easily dismiss these protests, thereby also dismissing the matter behind the protests, is saddening and frustrating. There’s cause for concern when someone with this type of power and authority thinks that an action intended to ignite discussion around a serious issue such as police brutality is “dumb.”
However, this does not discount the work that Justice GInsburg has done during her time as a Supreme Court Justice. She is tenacious and she has been an ardent supporter of progressive principles. Ginsburg made it clear that even though she and the late Justice Anton Scalia were close friends, she did not support many of his personal and legal opinions. Before she made it to the Supreme Court, she was a civil rights lawyer fighting to eradicate laws that allowed for gender discrimination, earning a reputation as a feminist force to be reckoned with along the way. It’s almost as if Shakespeare had her in mind when he wrote “Though she be but little, she is fierce!”
Yes, there are definitely places where the Notorious RBG’s opinions no longer match up with today’s progressive values. In issues of race, she unfortunately seems to have bought into the myth that somehow the civil rights movement was done by magical force, a myth that some in the Black Lives Matter have worked hard to dispel as they bring the movement to the next generation. But there’s no need to dismiss her entire history over this one issue, unless she gives us reason to believe that these opinions affect her SCOTUS decisions. The mighty don’t always have to fall when they stumble.
Related Story: New Ruth Bader Ginsburg Picture Book shows the value of assertiveness
During the interview with Couric, Justice Ginsburg also shared her thoughts on Donald Trump and his proposed ban on Muslims entering the country as well as her opinion Hillary Clinton and her appointment to the Supreme Court by Hillary’s husband, Bill. RBG is promoting her new book, a collection of her writings from over the years titled My Own Words