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[Pages S3099-S3100]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO SHIRLEY ABRAHAMSON
Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. President, today I wish to recognize the remarkable
career and legacy of Justice Shirley Abrahamson as she retires from the
Wisconsin Supreme Court. Justice Abrahamson has a long and
distinguished career upholding the law on Wisconsin's highest court.
Her unparalleled commitment to justice has promoted a fair and
impartial judicial system while greatly contributing to the promotion
of equal rights in Wisconsin.
Justice Abraham's exceptional career had modest beginnings in New
York City. Her parents were Polish immigrants who started a grocery
store in Manhattan. Her passion for the law started at the tender age
of 6, when she decided she wanted to become a lawyer. She was a
dedicated student, earning honors in high school and college.
Justice Abrahamson graduated magna cum laude with bachelor's degree
from New York University in 1953. She earned a law degree with high
distinction from Indiana University in 1956 and a doctor of law in
American legal history from the University of Wisconsin Law School in
1962. Before her appointment to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, Justice
Abrahamson practiced law in the private sector for 14 years and was a
distinguished professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School.
In 1976, Shirley Abrahamson broke the glass ceiling in Wisconsin's
judicial system by becoming the first female justice on the Wisconsin
Supreme Court. She again made history in 1996 when she became the first
woman to serve as chief justice. After winning four elections and
serving a total of 42 years, Justice Abrahamson is now the longest
serving supreme court justice in State history.
Though her career is punctuated by countless achievements and
distinctions, Justice Abrahamson's path to success was anything but
easy. Despite a multitude of academic distinctions and an unprecedented
affinity for the law, Justice Abrahamson was met with a demoralizing
wave of sexism when she entered the legal profession in the 1950s. The
dean of the Indiana University Law School traditionally placed the top
student from each graduating class at the largest law firm in
Indianapolis; yet after graduating first in her class from the
university in 1956, the dean told Justice Abrahamson he could
[[Page S3100]]
not place her at the firm because they just were not going to hire a
woman. Rather than feeling disheartened, Justice Abrahamson informed
the dean that she didn't want to go to Indianapolis, so the slight was
fine with her.
This type of discrimination was not an anomaly. Justice Abrahamson
was denied jobs, clients, and even social club memberships on the basis
of her gender. Undaunted by this prejudice, Justice Abrahamson took a
stand against gender inequality and refused to back down from those who
stood in the way of a woman's path to success in the legal field. Her
greatest legacy is the trail she blazed for countless young women, who
can see themselves in a courtroom or on a judicial bench because of the
barriers she fearlessly broke through. She will go down in history as
one of Wisconsin's most influential and powerful women, and she used
every bit of that influence and power in the pursuit of justice for all
Wisconsinites.
Justice Abrahamson is a true American hero. From her incomparable
tenure on the Wisconsin Supreme Court to her efforts as a pioneer for
gender equality, Justice Abrahamson has lived a life devoted to service
and justice for all.
____________________
