One More Dissent
Poem
It hit me like nothing
I’d ever felt before.
Justice Ginsburg, dead; country,
even further at war.
I screamed, threw my phone,
posted photos and cried.
With fear-fueled rage
for a future that died.
It’s a never-ending struggle
when you’re down 5 to 4.
Made a million times worse
if you lose just 1 more.
Now wait for their lists —
all right-wing approved.
Litmus test, shady meetings.
Constructionists. Unmoved.
American names —
strong, strict, revered.
Beholden to God, yes,
but not to their peers.
The darkness before the dawn
looks darker than ever.
And the light of a new day,
well, it might never…
I wish I could say,
it won’t be a fight.
For the soul of this country
and those inalienable rights.
See, not long ago,
there wasn’t much hope.
For a woman — anyone for that matter —
not white male born.
But Ruth Bader trudged forward,
to the top of the class.
And kicked her male counters
in their lily white ass.
Cornell, Harvard, Columbia;
polished halls, all Ivy.
One in nine in 500,
where men reigned almighty.
Went higher and higher,
Marty Ginsburg by her side.
Took on the role of mother,
in addition to wife.
With her quick legal mind,
she stood up to professors.
Who asked inane questions
of women they thought lesser.
Law reviews and late nights.
Ruth’s résumé impeccable.
But she was denied a clerk’s post.
I know, right?? Incredible…
There was Rutgers,
where pay was not up to par.
Unworthy of Ruth,
and her rising star.
Battle waged. Campaign on.
She rallied the women.
Got raises, respect.
A direction to move in.
Six cases to the Supremes.
Won five, proved her hand.
Fit and able to serve.
Highest court in the land.
And when Ruth spoke the day
she accepted the nom.
She thanked those closest to her,
then finally, her mom.
Celia Amster Bader,
who gave us her Joan,
who then became Justice —
the liberal backbone.
Notoriously defiant,
our history will note.
RBG made lives better.
This legend. This GOAT.
It’s easy to give in,
when their battle seems won.
But her spirit lives on and
our work’s just begun.
With feet on our necks,
hearts broken and fazed.
This year isn’t over
and we damn sure can’t cave.
McConnell and crew
think they got us in check.
By the power of Ginsburg,
we the people dissent.