THE EMILY TAYLOR AND MARILYN STOKSTAD WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP LECTURE

"Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Women’s Leadership in Modern America"

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg never asked for fame—she only tried to make the world a little better and a little freer.Yet nearly a half-century into her career, the octogenarian became a twenty-first-cen­tury icon.  Across America, people who were not even born when Ginsburg first made her name as a feminist pioneer were tattooing themselves with her face, setting her famously searing dissents to music, and making viral videos in tribute.

Notorious RBG, by Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik, inspired by the Tumblr that amused the Justice herself, is more than just a love letter. It draws on intimate access to Ginsburg’s family mem­bers, close friends, colleagues and clerks, as well as interviews with the Justice herself. An original hybrid of reported narrative, anno­tated dissents, rare archival photos, documents, and illustrations, the book tells a never-before-told story of an unusual and trans­formative woman who transcended generational divides. As the country continues to struggle with the unfinished business of gen­der equality and civil rights, Ginsburg’s life stands as a testament to how far we can come with a little chutzpah.

Irin Carmon is senior correspondent for New York Magazine and a CNN contributor. Born in Israel, Carmon graduated from Harvard, magna cum laude with highest honors in lit­erature in 2005. While writ­ing for Salon and Jezebel in 2011, she was named one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30 in Media. From 2013 to 2016, Carmon was a national re­porter at MSNBC and NBC News, reporting on gender, politics, and the law, with a special emphasis on reproductive rights and the Supreme Court. Her reporting and commentary appeared across print, radio, television, and digital platforms. In 2017-18, Irin Carmon teamed up with Washington Post reporter Amy Brit­tain to break the news of sexual harassment and assault allegations against Charlie Rose, as well as CBS’s knowledge of his conduct. Their work won a 2018 Mirror Award from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University.

Irin Carmon, "Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Women's Leadership in Modern America"