WASHINGTON: Mourners dropped off bouquets and gathered outside the Supreme Court early Saturday in quiet tribute to the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Homemade cardboard signs and a collection of flowers blanketed the court’s grounds.
Hours earlier, hundreds of people had turned out after hearing of Ginsburg’s death. They wept and sang in a candlelight vigil, packing the high courts steps in a spontaneous memorial.
Scores of candles flickered in the nighttime wind as people knelt to leave flowers, American flags and handwritten condolence messages for Ginsburg, who died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87 after 27 years on the court. Prayer candles with Ginsburgs photo on them were also left on the steps.
Several times, dozens in the crowd broke out into song, singing Amazing Grace and This Land is Your Land as others embraced one another and wiped tears from their eyes. At one point, the crowd broke into a thunderous applause lasting for about a minute for Ginsburg.
Thank you RBG, one sign read. On the sidewalk, RBG was drawn inside a pink chalk heart.
Jennifer Berger, 37, said she felt compelled to join the large crowd that gathered to pay tribute to Ginsburgs life.
I think it is important for us to recognize such a trailblazer, she said. It is amazing to see how many people are feeling this loss tonight and saying goodbye.
Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the courts liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace the courts Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the Notorious RBG, for her defense of the rights of women and minorities.
The memorial service remained mostly peaceful and somber, but turned tense for several minutes after a man with a megaphone approached people in the crowd and began to chant that Roe v. Wade is dead, a refence to the landmark Supreme Court ruling establishing abortion rights nationwide.
A large group confronted the man, leading to a brief shouting match. Many in the crowd began yelling RBG to try to drown out the mans voice as he continued to say Republicans would push to quickly appoint a conservative justice to the court. Supreme Court police officers stood alongside the crowd and the man eventually left the area.
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