U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died at her home in Washington on Friday at the age of 87, according to a statement by the Supreme Court.
Justice Ginsburg battled metastatic pancreatic cancer since 2009.
“Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague,” Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. wrote in the statement. “Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her – a tireless and resolute champion of justice.”
Ginsburg was the second woman to serve in the U.S. Supreme Court, after being nominated by former President Bill Clinton in 1993.
“I share the sorrow of many at the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. A pioneer in women’s rights and anti-discrimination law, she was a role model for women of my generation,” SF State President Lynn Mahoney said.
Ginsburg was also the first Jewish woman to serve in the U.S. Supreme Court.
“I think her passing on Rosh Hashanah is poignant and inspiring. Her passing on this day may be saying that she’s brought us this far; the rest is up to us,” said Kasturi Ray, Associate Professor and Chair of the Women and Gender Studies Department at SF State.
Politicians and members of the public took to social media to honor the passing of what some referred to as a “feminist hero.”
“Like millions of Americans I am devastated by Justice Bader Ginsburg’s passing,” SF State political science professor Aaron Belkin wrote on Twitter. “She was an icon and an American hero, and her dying wish absolutely must be respected.”
Days before her passing, Justice Ginsburg said her most fervent wish was that she would “not be replaced until a new president is installed,” according to NPR.
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell released a statement following Ginsburg’s death that said, “President Trump’s nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States.”
President Trump has already appointed two members of the Supreme Court, justices Neil M. Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh.
President Trump’s short list of potential candidates for the Supreme Court seat include U.S. Senators, Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton, according to a press release issued on Sept. 9 by the White House.
“I think we were all clinging to the notion that this would never happen,” San Francisco’s Supervisor Aaron Peskin shared in a tweet.
This story is developing and will be updated.
