TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Local leaders are remembering the legacy of the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
She blazed a trail starting out as a young Jewish girl in Brooklyn to holding a seat on the highest bench in the nation, and communities that see themselves reflected in her legacy promise to make sure it lives on.
The Oasis Center for Women and Girls is striving to empower women in our community.
Each year, they recognize trailblazing women in Tallahassee.
Now, they want to remember Ginsburg's contributions as the first female Jewish Justice with a dedicated youth program in 2021.
"With our girl's program we are considering for our next summer of Girls Can do Anything to really take a full week to focus on the work of Justice Ginsburg and how she's been a trailblazer," said Marisa Button, the Executive Director of Oasis Center for Women and Girls.
They're not alone in recognizing the unique path she took to her seat in history.
Temple Israel of Tallahassee Rabbi Michael Shields says her profound and prophetic insights into justice should be cherished by all.
The timing of her passing, he adds, has a special resonance in the Jewish community on the heels of Rosh Hashanah.
"We sounded the Shofar the ram's horn, which really is supposed to awaken in us a to call for justice and Justice Ginsburg knew so well the pain of injustice in her life's work, in her own path to the courts, and it was a momentous path," said Shields.
Shields says there is still much to do to uphold her legacy and he hopes her passing will inspire leaders across the country to continue her life's work.
"I think also though that Justice Ginsburg realized that some people had an easier path forward," Shields said. "There weren't such roadblocks in their way as there were for her and she even realized that she carried privilege as well."
Known for her straightforward remarks and firm rulings, Shields says voices like Ginsburg's are needed now more than ever as the nation battles social unrest highlighted by the pandemic.
"I think her prophetic insight and work for justice needs to inspire the children in my congregation, needs to inspire me, needs to inspire everybody across this country," said Shields.
Ginsburg served as a Justice of the Supreme Court for 27 years. She will lie in repose at the Supreme Court through Friday.
