September 21, 1981 - Sandra Day O'Connor appointed as the first female Supreme Court justice

Sandra Day O’Connor being sworn in as a 

Supreme Court Justice on Sept 25, 1981. 

Beside O’Connor is her husband,

 holding two family Bibles.

On this day in history, Sandra Day O’ Connor was elected as the first female Supreme Court Justice, a position she retained for the next twenty-four years. She is known as one of the great women in U.S. History for her work in helping to pave the way for women’s participation and advancement in government and politics. When she was elected, the Supreme Court building did not even have a separate bathroom for women. [1]

O’Connor was born on March 26, 1930 in El Paso, Texas to a family of ranchers. In recent years and after all her accomplishments, O’Connor has still referred to herself as simply a “retired cowgirl.” She attended Stanford University and graduated with a degree in economics in 1950 and then from its law school, from which she graduated in two years as number three in her class in 1952.[2]

Even with all of her academic accomplishments, she had difficulty finding a job as an attorney when she graduated because, at the time, women were not hired as attorneys at most law firms. Over the next few decades, O’Connor worked as a county attorney in California, a lawyer in Germany, at a private practice in Arizona, as Arizona’s assistant attorney general, and finally, in 1969, she was elected to fill an Arizona State Senate vacancy and was reelected for two terms. All of her years of working entry level positions eventually paid off and she became the judge of the Maricopa County Superior Court, where she gains a reputation as a strong, fair, law-minded judge.[3]

It came as no surprise that O’Connor’s reputation and public service would soon catch the attention of President Reagan, who appointed her as the first female Supreme Court Justice. She was singlehandedly helping to change Americans’ views of women in politics often because she was relatable and understood the people and the changes they wanted to see. Sandra Day O’Connor was known as a “person for all seasons” meaning that she was able to adapt to America’s changing social, political and economic issues. [4]She often was the deciding vote on important issues because she was adept at reading the general consensus of the Supreme Court, acting as a mediator of sorts or “consensus builder.”[5] She fully believed that judges were not qualified to create laws or be involved in legislation, but that a judge’s job was to interpret the law and judge accordingly.

Painting of O’Connor, created by Danni Dawson in

 1999 - part of the Supreme Court Collection

Sandra Day O’Connor is a great woman in U.S. history, not only because of her amazing achievements as a Supreme Court Justice, but because she is a strong woman and a role model for younger generations of Americans, especially women. In 1988, she was diagnosed with breast cancer, underwent a full mastectomy and ultimately beat it, becoming a survivor. [6] In 2006, O’Connor retired as Supreme Court Justice in order to care for her husband, who eventually died of Alzheimer’s disease. [7]

Since her retirement in 2006, she has not slowed down. She actively promotes the removal of the elections of judges because she still feels that judges should not be loyal to anyone meaning that judges should be loyal to the Constitution. [8]She believes that being elected creates an illusion of integrity and justness, instead of judges being completely unbiased and law-minded. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009 from President Barack Obama for her many years of public service.[9]She stated in a recent interview that she felt an immense responsibility to future generations of females, because “I felt a special responsibility… I could either do an adequate job so it would be possible for other women to be appointed without people saying, ‘Oh , see, a woman can’t do it’, so it became very important that I perform in a way that wouldn’t provide some reason or cause not to have more women in the future. That was very important to me.” [10]

- Amanda D., Jordan C., and Tony W.





[1] “'Out Of Order' At The Court: O'Connor On Being The First Female Justice.” The NPR Books, http://www.npr.org/2013/03/05/172982275/out-of-order-at-the-court-oconnor-on-being-the-first-female-justice (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[2] "Sandra Day O'Connor," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/sandra-day-oconnor-9426834 (accessed Sep 5, 2013); “Sandra Day O’Connor Fast Facts,” The CNN Library, http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/30/us/sandra-day-oconnor-fast-facts/index.html (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[3] “Sandra Day O’Connor Fast Facts,” The CNN Library, http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/30/us/sandra-day-oconnor-fast-facts/index.html (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[4] Hayes, Hannah. “Sandra Day O’Connor: The Center Vote that Counted.” Perspectives Magazine, Fall Issue 2005, Vol.14, N.2 http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/publishing/perspectives_magazine/women_perspectives_SandraDayOconnorFall2005.authcheckdam.pdf (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[5] Hayes, Hannah. “Sandra Day O’Connor: The Center Vote that Counted.” Perspectives Magazine, Fall Issue 2005, Vol.14, N.2 http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/publishing/perspectives_magazine/women_perspectives_SandraDayOconnorFall2005.authcheckdam.pdf (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[6] "Sandra Day O'Connor," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/sandra-day-oconnor-9426834 (accessed Sep 5, 2013); “Sandra Day O’Connor Fast Facts,” The CNN Library, http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/30/us/sandra-day-oconnor-fast-facts/index.html (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[7] “'Out Of Order' At The Court: O'Connor On Being The First Female Justice.” The NPR Books, http://www.npr.org/2013/03/05/172982275/out-of-order-at-the-court-oconnor-on-being-the-first-female-justice (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[8] "Sandra Day O'Connor," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/sandra-day-oconnor-9426834 (accessed Sep 5, 2013); “Sandra Day O’Connor Fast Facts,” The CNN Library, http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/30/us/sandra-day-oconnor-fast-facts/index.html (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[9] "Sandra Day O'Connor," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/sandra-day-oconnor-9426834 (accessed Sep 5, 2013).

[10] “'Out Of Order' At The Court: O'Connor On Being The First Female Justice.” The NPR Books, http://www.npr.org/2013/03/05/172982275/out-of-order-at-the-court-oconnor-on-being-the-first-female-justice (accessed Sep 5, 2013).