The Opperman Foundation’s Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Leadership Award, which was set to honour notable figures such as Elon Musk and Rupert Murdoch, has been cancelled due to complaints from high-profile individuals. The honourees for this year’s award also included Martha Stewart, Michael Milken and Sylvester Stallone. However, the inclusion of Musk and the former CEO of FOX News drew criticism from members of the Ginsburg family. Ginsburg’s son, James voiced his opposition to the foundation, saying that his mother would be “appalled” at the choice of awardees.
The controversy surrounding the event arose due to the foundation’s decision to recognise individuals that the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg would not have supported. Ginsburg’s son questioned the logic of the selection, stating that he could not think of individuals further from his mother’s goals of “trying to create a more just society”. These comments were echoed by Barbra Streisand, who took to Instagram to show her support for the Ginsburg family and condemn the selection of honourees.
The ceremony was originally scheduled to take place at the Library of Congress on April 13. However, in light of the backlash, the foundation released a statement indicating that the event has been cancelled. The statement acknowledged that the honourees were “worthy of our respect for their leadership and their notable contributions” but recognised the importance of the award in the context of Ginsburg’s values.
This latest development comes on the heels of controversy surrounding Elon Musk. Last week, the Tesla founder cancelled a journalist’s X account after they enquired about his alleged use of ketamine. The decision to cancel the account has been widely criticised and is considered a departure from the billionaire’s usual stance of being open and transparent with the media
Read the full article on NME here: Read More