Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg — who passed away last year — was famed for championing gender equality and women’s rights.
Ginsburg’s refusal to step down from the Supreme Court in her late eighties allowed former President Donald Trump to appoint conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, but even that had no impact on her status as a liberal icon.
RBG’s views on racial justice, however, were not in lockstep with the current liberal Democratic worldview. In fact, according to journalist Katie Couric, the late justice despised athletes who kneeled during the national anthem.
Couric Interviewed RBG
When Couric interviewed Ginsburg in 2016, she asked for a comment on former NFL player Colin Kaepernick’s actions — Kaepernick was the first athlete to kneel during the anthem in protest of racial injustice, police brutality, and systematic oppression.
Ginsburg’s answer was apparently so shocking to Couric that she actually refused to air it. Instead, she deceptively edited the video of the interview in order to "protect" the late Supreme Court Justice’s reputation.
Couric writes about this episode in her forthcoming memoir Going There, according to The Daily Mail.
Read more below.
What RBG Said
Couric writes in her memoir that Ginsburg said refusing to stand for the anthem was "dumb and disrespectful."
She added that those who kneel during the anthem are showing "contempt for a government that has made it possible for their parents and grandparents to live a decent life."
"Which they probably could not have lived in the places they came from… as they became older they realize that this was youthful folly," Ginsburg continued.
"And that’s why education is important," the late Supreme Court justice said.
‘Dumb And Disrespectful’
Ginsburg explained to Couric that athletes have a right to protest during the anthem, but slammed their actions as "dumb and disrespectful."
"Would I arrest them for doing it? No. I think it’s dumb and disrespectful. I would have the same answer if you asked me about flag burning."
"If they want to be arrogant, there’s no law that prevents them from that. What I would do is strongly take issue with the point of view that they are expressing when they do that," she said.
Couric’s Reaction
But Couric writes in her book that she was shocked by Ginsburg’s remarks and that she thought the justice, who was 83 at the time of the interview, was "elderly and probably didn’t fully understand the question."
According to the journalist, RBG’s comments were "unworthy of a crusader for equality" so they were edited out.
As Fox News noted, this was not the first time for Couric to deceptively edit video footage.
In 2016, she edited her interview with pro-gun activists to make it seem they had no idea how to answer one of her questions.
