Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett suggested that conservatives who study law are more “feminist” than their liberal counterparts.
Barrett made the claim during an onstage interview at a Federalist Society gala in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, alongside fellow Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in whch she offered advice for conservatives to ignore how liberals may view their personal and professional choices.
“In truth, being a conservative woman in law school, particularly, takes a lot of courage and independence, and in many ways shows more feminism than just falling into some predetermined vision of what a woman should be,” Barrett said, according to Politico. “I admire your courage for facing that.”
Barrett, who along with Kavanaugh was nominated to the Supreme Court Bench by President Donald Trump, also told the conservative women in the audience not to feel “suffocated” by expectations in law school or in their lives, including whether they choose to have children.
“All women should feel free to truly choose whatever it is they want, whether it is to be conservative or to be liberal or to have large families, to not get married—whatever it may be,” Barrett said. “There is no stereotype of what a professional woman should look like.”
Barrett added that having seven children is among the “counter-cultural” choices she has made in her life.
Both Barrett and Kavanaugh also discussed the criticism they have faced while on the Supreme Court, including consistently siding with the Trump administration with little or no explanation for their decisions.
“You’ve got to tune out criticism in our jobs, absolutely,” Kavanaugh said. “But… you always need to be willing to learn and listen to responsible critiques.”
Barrett also mentioned alleged death threats she received and abortion-related protests that took place at her home. “You can’t take an oath to the Constitution if you’re not willing to sacrifice,” she said.
In 2020, Democrats and liberal groups warned that Barrett, a devout Catholic, would seek to roll back abortion rights protected under Roe v. Wade if she was fast-tracked to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The Catholic Church teaches that life begins at conception and opposes abortion in all circumstances.
Barrett and Kavanaugh later joined the Court’s conservative majority in overturning Roe v. Wade in June 2022, with Barrett releasing a tell-all book about it in September.
