Society as a whole benefits immeasurably from a climate in which all persons, regardless of race or gender, may have the opportunity to earn respect, responsibility, advancement and remuneration based on ability.
SANDRA DAY O'CONNORI’m a judge. It seemed to me that it was critical to try to take action to stem the criticism and help people understand that in the constitutional framework, it’s terribly important not to have a system of retaliation against decisions people don’t like.
More Sandra Day O'Connor Quotes
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I tried to decide each case based on the law and the Constitution.
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(W)e do not count heads before enforcing the First Amendment.
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Each justice hires their own clerks, and applications are made individually to the justices. It isn’t a group decision.
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The fact is that knowledge about the Constitution and the Court is not something that is handed down through the gene pool; every generation has to learn it. And I’m not sure the recent generations have done that good a job of learning about it.
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Liberty finds no refuge in a jurisprudence of doubt.
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I have always thought that while it’s wonderful to be the first to do something, you don’t want to be the last.
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I’m a judge. It seemed to me that it was critical to try to take action to stem the criticism and help people understand that in the constitutional framework, it’s terribly important not to have a system of retaliation against decisions people don’t like.
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The unhappy persistence of both the practice and the lingering effects of racial discrimination …is an unfortunate reality…and the government is not disqualified from acting in response to it.
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I think I learned to appreciate and treasure each day, because you don’t know how many you’re going to be given.
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I loved my husband very much, and it was heartbreaking to have him develop Alzheimer’s disease, and to stand by and watch him decline in his ability to take care of himself.
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I don’t think it’s the court’s perceived role to do some explaining of a political nature.
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How dare you make my life a felony.
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Having family responsibilities and concerns just has to make you a more understanding person.
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If parents instill a sense of civic-mindedness – and there is no better way to do that than by example – their children will probably follow.
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It is a measure of the framers’ fear that a passing majority might find it expedient to compromise 4th Amendment values that these values were embodied in the Constitution itself.
SANDRA DAY O'CONNOR