On what would have been the Notorious RBG’s 88th birthday, and Brooklyn’s “Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Day,” the Brooklyn Municipal Building was officially renamed after the iconic Supreme Court Justice.
The renaming had been in the works for almost three years, before her tragic death this past September. A petition had been started by Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, and as of March 15, 2021 it has finally been fully realized: it is now officially dubbed the “Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Municipal Building.”
Justice Ginsburg is a Brooklyn native, born in Flatbush on March 15, 1933 and graduated from James Madison High School in 1950. She was the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court, and throughout her career worked tirelessly to create more gender equity in the U.S., from cases advocating for women in the military to equal treatment in insurance to fighting discrimination on the basis of pregnancy (you can read more about here legacy here).
“Almost three years ago, we launched a campaign to re-name the Brooklyn Municipal Building in honor of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a proud daughter of Brooklyn and a legal trailblazer,” said Adams. He continued:
Her tireless advocacy throughout her career on behalf of the marginalized in our society is an enduring example to us all. While she is no longer with us, her legacy shines bright in the millions and millions of lives she changed for the better. Thanks to this re-naming, generations of Brooklynites and New Yorkers will learn about her achievements — and know that they too can carry the baton she has passed to us for the next leg of our march toward a more just, equitable society.
The Brooklyn Municipal Building was built in 1924 in downtown Brooklyn and is where the City Clerk is located (where marriage licenses are obtained), as well as offices for the Departments of Buildings, Probation, Finance, and Environmental Protection. There are now plaques dedicated to Justice Ginsburg on both sides of the building’s main entrance.
featured image source: NYC Mayor’s Office