Saying that honoring Justice Ginsburg’s dying wish to keep her Supreme Court seat vacant until after the election would be an uphill battle was an understatement. NCJW knew that it would be a longshot. Yet the reason we chose to fight was inspired by something else that Justice Ginsburg had to say, years prior:

“Dissents speak to a future age. It’s not simply to say, ‘My colleagues are wrong, and I would do it this way.’ But the greatest dissents become court opinions, and gradually over time, their views become the dominant view. So that’s the dissenter’s hope: that they are writing not for today but tomorrow.”

While we certainly knew that it would take everything we had and more to keep Barrett off the bench, we knew that by just showing up to stand up and speak out was enough, dayenu, to show future generations of advocates and activists that we dissented, that we disapprove of the rushed process and unjust confirmation. 

Not only did NCJW advocates speak out, but we also did so in record numbers. Here is just a sample of the mountains of work we did: 

• We reached over two million people through the press, social media, radio, and podcasts.
• Together we raised over $300,000
• We engaged 15,000 advocates across the country in 19 sections and 15 states.
• Put together 70+ actions, including 30+ action alerts, 20 webinars, rallies, and virtual advocacy events, and seven sign-on letters to senators.
• Generated almost 19,000 calls to the Senate, reached every Senator, and had over 10 lobby visits 
• Engaged with over 1,000 people at 33 Circling, the Courthouse ritual walks across the country.

Thank you, todah rabah, to everyone who mobilized with us, whether making a call, circling a courthouse, or making a contribution. We didn’t win this fight, but we have so much to be proud of. Future generations of NCJW advocates can look back on this moment and know that we dissented and left the door open for more feminist change.