North Carolina Divorce Lawyers BlogCelebrating Powerful Women: Sandra Day O’Connor
Honoring America’s First Woman U.S. Supreme Court Nominee
America is a beautiful country built on powerful ideals like democracy and freedom of speech. To ensure our sovereign rights are protected, court systems are in place. The highest court in the land is the Supreme Court, where nine judges seek to interpret the Constitution and how it applies to major legal disputes. For the vast majority of our country’s existence, the Supreme Court consisted of male judges. All of that changed on August 19, 1981, when President Ronald Reagan nominated the first woman to our highest court, Sandra Day O’Connor. To celebrate the 45th anniversary of this monumental day, let’s take a closer look at Mrs. O’Connor’s life and legacy.
Simple Beginnings
Sandra Day was born on March 26, 1930, on a 198,000-acre Arizona cattle farm. The Day family didn’t get electricity or running water to the home until Sandra was seven. To ensure their daughter had the best schooling, Sandra’s parents sent her to live with her grandmother during her early years, and she then attended a private girls’ school for her secondary education. Sandra thrived at school and went on to attend Stanford University at only 16 years old. She graduated magna cum laude with a degree in economics in 1950. Interestingly, during her time at Stanford, she served on the Stanford Law Review, where her editor-in-chief was the future Supreme Court justice, William Rehnquist.
A Passion for Politics
After her marriage to John Jay O’Connor III, Sandra began working various legal jobs. She also volunteered for numerous political organizations, like the Maricopa County Young Republicans. In 1965, after serving as assistant Attorney General of Arizona, Sandra was elected to the Arizona Senate. She quickly developed a reputation as a skilled moderator and negotiator and was appointed to the Maricopa County Superior Court in 1974. Mrs. O’Connor caught the eye of President Ronald Reagan, who ran his presidential campaign with a promise to appoint the first woman to the Supreme Court. While her nomination wasn’t without controversy, she was eventually confirmed with a vote of 99-0 on September 21, 1981.
Strength of Conviction
Sandra Day O’Connor’s time in the Supreme Court wasn’t easy. She faced constant pressure to demonstrate that women could do the job of Supreme Court ustice. She faced discrimination on many fronts but never stopped seeking justice for all. While she was considered unpredictable in her court decisions, Mrs. O’Connor never let a political party determine how she voted. She took a case-by-case approach that truly set her apart from the rest.
On the 45th anniversary of her nomination, Americans can look back at the life and legacy of Sandra Day O’Connor and how a simple girl from Arizona could rise up to sit on the highest court in the land and make an impact that would last for generations.
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