Far-left singer Barbra Streisand helped torpedo a planned ceremony for the RBG leadership award to Elon Musk, the tech billionaire who helped build PayPal, built Tesla and SpaceX, and now owns X, and to media mogul Robert Murdoch. Both were planned honorees of the leadership award given their immense accomplishments as the titanic leaders at the helms of great enterprises, but apparently the complaints of the woke singer and the late justice’s family were enough to sink their chances.
As background, the RBG leadership award is named for former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. It is presented every year by the Opperman Foundation for those who are leaders in society. Traditionally it was given to women, but this year it was planned to be awarded to four men, including among them Musk and Murdoch. The ceremony was cancelled after Streisand and RBG’s family complained about the inclusion of Musk and Murdoch.
Streisand, a former recipient of the award, posted her complaint to Instagram. She said she was honored to have won the award and then blasted the Foundation for awarding it to Elon, insinuating that his inclusion is somehow not commensurate with “democratic values” and “women’s rights.”
Beginning, she wrote, “Last year I was proud to accept the Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Woman of Leadership Award in memory of one of the most esteemed public figures in American history. I was especially honored that Justice Sonia Sotomayor made the presentation.”
Continuing, she added, “Justices Ginsburg and Sotomayor stand as two of the most respected women role models, and their commitment to democratic values, especially women’s rights, is unequaled. That’s why I join the Ginsburg family in condemning the choice of honorees this year. I had the privilege of meeting Justice Ginsburg on several occasions, and I strongly doubt she would approve of these awardees.”
Justice Gisnburg’s son, Jim Ginsburg, complained as well. He said, “I don’t want to speak to what our other plans might be if the foundation doesn’t see the wisdom of desisting and ending this desecration of my mother’s memory, but I will say that we will continue to fight this.” He added, “I think these are people who pretty much stand against all the things that she stood for in terms of trying to … make the world a better place, for people striving for equality and for a more inclusive world where everybody is treated with respect.”
The Opperman Foundation soon withdrew the award. Beginning the letter doing so, it wrote, “This year we selected leaders in different fields. We honored men for the first time. We thought RBG’s teachings regarding EQUALITY should be practiced. We did not consider politics. Instead, we focused on leaders, who, in their own way, have made significant contributions to society.”
It continued, “Keeping in mind that our goal is only to do good, the Foundation is not interested in creating controversy. It is not interested in generating a debate about whether particular honorees are worthy or not. And while Justice Ginsburg’s concept of EQUALITY for women was very controversial for most of her life, the Foundation does not intend to enter the fray. Indeed, Justice Ginsburg was known for her civility.“
It concluded, “It is important to note, that the last thing we intended was to offend the family and friends of RBG. Our purpose was only to remember her and to honor her leadership. And, while we believe each of the honorees is worthy of our respect for their leadership and their notable contributions, the Foundation has decided that the planned ceremony in April 2024 will be canceled.“
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