Causes.com
| 12.4.23

Former SCOTUS Justice Sandra Day O'Connor Dies at 93

Will you celebrate her legacy?

What's the story?

  • Sandra Day O'Connor, the first female judge on the Supreme Court, has died at 93 from complications linked to dementia and a respiratory illness. 
  • O'Connor was appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1981 and sat on the court for over 24 years until her retirement in 2006. She was known as a conservative moderate with a balanced approach to a wide range of legal topics.
  • She often voted in favor of women's rights, environmental rights, and voting rights throughout her career. She sided with her liberal colleagues on affirmative action and abortion rights.
  • Speaking on affirmative action, she said:

"Affirmative action's benefits are not theoretical, but real. Effective participation by members of all racial and ethnic groups in the civic life of our nation is essential if the dream of one nation, indivisible, is to be realized."

A lasting legacy

  • During her tenure, the court was often called the "O'Connor court," as she was often referred to as the most powerful woman in America.
  • Prior to her appointment, she had served in the legislative branch of state government, spending five years in the Arizona Senate.
  • Justice O'Connor was active in law during her retirement. She sat as a visiting judge on federal appeals courts around the country and advocated in support of judicial independence and civics education.
  • Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate majority leader, called her:

"One of the true historic figures of the 20th century."

 

Will you celebrate her legacy?

 

-Emma Kansiz

(Photo Credit: John Duricka / AP file)

  • 99.3k
    LeslieG
    Voted Yes
    12/04/2023

    Sandra Day O'Connor (SDO) will always be remembered as not only the 1st female judge on the Supreme Court, known for her hard working, moderate conservative position where she was the deciding vote and wrote an opinion for 360 cases but also the 1st State Attorney General (AZ) unlike todays court where most cases come through the shadow docket where neither a written opinion nor signature is required.

    Like RBG, she was initially offered secretarial positions after graduating from a pre-eminent law school (Stanford versus RBG Harvard-Columbia) but eventual found work in the public sector (deputy district attorney versus RBG Rutgers law professor).

    SDO's husband was also an attorney (like RBGs) so they both did a stint in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General Corps in Germany before returning to the U.S. for private practice followed by becoming the 1st U.S. state attorney general (AZ) until she was appointed to the Supreme Court during the Reagan Presidency.

    Even in retirement she was civic minded creating an online games platform to teach 5M students in 50 states civics.

    "She was the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court. A moderate conservative, she was known for her dispassionate and meticulously researched opinions."

    "360 Supreme Court cases decided 5-4, she cast the deciding vote for the majority, including 114 cases where she wrote an opinion."

    "developed a reputation for independent, rigorously fact-based legal thinking and analysis. Justice O'Connor often focused on the real-world implications of any given Court decision and prioritized the impacts on real people over purely ideological or theoretical considerations. This prevented her from being pigeonholed into a simple "liberal" or "conservative" box."

    "After retiring from the Supreme Court, she spearheaded the creation of an online games platform for learning civics that is used today by more than 5 million students in all 50 states."

    https://oconnorinstitute.org/civic-programs/oconnor-history/sandra-day-oconnor-policy-archives-research-library/legacy/

    https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sandra-Day-OConnor

  • 1,875
    RoyB
    12/04/2023

    She will be honored among the greats.  Yes, I will celebrate her legacy.  

  • 1,128
    Lois
    Voted Maybe
    12/05/2023

    I am glad she broke that glass ceiling and I agreed with her vote on Roe v Wade.  But she also was too biased toward the republicans

  • 4,132
    John
    Voted Yes
    12/04/2023

    I look at this woman's groundbreaking legacy as a Supreme Court judge with amazement and think my god what a wonderful person, then I look at Clarence Thomas and I think I wanna throw up on my shoes.

  • 3,770
    Kevin
    Voted Maybe
    12/05/2023

    I didn't agree with her about everything.

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  • 8,497
    DaveS
    Voted Yes
    12/09/2023

    She was way better than Alitos will ever and his sloppy work to get his way!

    0
    Today at 5:59 AM
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  • 2,451
    Martha
    Voted Yes
    12/05/2023

    She followed and upheld the Constitution, unlke the 6 jackass conservatives currently on the bench.

  • 2,622
    530 East Hunt Highway
    Voted Yes
    12/05/2023

    As a woman she broke the glass ceiling and thrived in a man's world!

  • 378
    Jim
    Voted Yes
    12/04/2023

    She was an outstanding judge that did her best to uphold and  interpret the constitution. Unlike some of our sitting judges today that are more than willing to change positions or interpretation based upon gifts, vacations, or favors. P

  • 233
    Robert
    Voted Yes
    12/04/2023

    I was just a kid when we arrived in Arizona in 1948. Mostly everyone was like Sandra Day, frank, accepting, hard-working, gracious, friendly. We looked out for one another. Now, not so much. This country was built by people like her. She represents the very best in human nature and in the American spirit.

  • 51.9k
    Brian
    Voted Yes
    12/04/2023

    Despite her conservative leanings on some rulings, O'Connor was historic and remarkable as both the first woman on the Supreme Court (after, you know, 200+ years of only men) and a consensus builder her used her ample retirement years to speak out on behalf of Alzheimer's care. I'm sad that I didn't realize she was still alive, but really happy she had a long retirement and enjoyed her privacy.

    Justice O'Connor forged a path for other women to follow and is a role model for girls across the country, and I hope her legacy is never diminished as the Court itself struggles for relevance and credibility.