[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 87 (Thursday, May 23, 2019)]
[Senate]
[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.

                          ____________________