Brooklyn Municipal Building could be renamed after Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams has launched a campaign that seeks to honor U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The campaign comes shortly after Ginsburg’s 25th anniversary as a Supreme Court Justice, celebrated in August, and calls for the renaming of the Brooklyn Municipal Building to one that honors her storied career (h/t New York Times).

“In an era where popular culture puts performing artists and sports stars on a public pedestal, Ruth Bader Ginsburg has risen to incredible levels of iconic admiration and love,” wrote Borough President Adams in a Change.org petition. “Society often waits to recognize a lifetime of accomplishment until after that lifetime ends. In this case, we can honor the life and service of Ruth Bader Ginsburg during what we hope will be a long and active remaining life.”

Ginsburg was born in 1933 and raised in Flatbush, Brooklyn. She graduated from Columbia Law School in 1959 at the top of her class, however, no law firm in New York would hire her as a lawyer since she was a woman. Ginsburg was the first woman to become a tenured professor at Columbia Law School, and in 1993, she became the second female Supreme Court justice. Ginsburg has spent her career advocating for women’s rights, co-founding the Women’s Rights Law Reporter in 1970, as well as the Women’s Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in 1972.

The request to rename the Brooklyn Municipal after Ginsburg has garnered the support of several other elected officials, along with community organizations and women’s rights activists. Mayor Bill de Blasio would have to grant his approval before the renaming can take place.

• Rename the Brooklyn Municipal Building for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg [Change.org]