A clip from an interview of Judge Judy Sheindlin on the Ellen DeGeneres Show hit my Facebook feed today and inspired me to make this post about something very profound that Judge Judy said about why women should be financially independent from their husbands or partners. The relevant clip can be found on YouTube and the clip is below.
The gist of Judge Judy’s remarks essentially mirrors the quote that opens this post. Women should be financially independent from their husbands or partners because to be financially dependent on anyone you are in a relationship with means to give up equity in the relationship.
Now I know some of my readers, many of my friends and family members, and definitely followers of manosphere content and traditionalists will counter that there is not, nor should there be equality in a serious, long term romantic relationship.
The logic behind such thinking is that the man in the relationship must be the provider as well as the protector in order to lead the financial, spiritual, and physical wellbeing of the relationship and the family. Women tend not to respect men who aren’t or are incapable of being the provider and breadwinner in the relationship. The notion behind this thinking, aside from the respect factor, is this dynamic allows the woman to concentrate on caring for the home and being the nurturer of the family and the relationship.
While I find this traditionalist view to have considerable merit and societal value, I agree with Judge Judy’s comments. That she is 81 years old and is a product of the era when such traditionalist values were ostensibly at their height, her comments are particularly relevant since they come from a perspective that didn’t necessarily evolve over time, but are deeply rooted in the era she grew up and spent most of her adult life in.
Judge Judy earned her Juris Doctor in 1965, was a practicing attorney from 1965 until 1982, and a judge from 1982 until 1996 in New York family court before becoming a television judge (legal arbitrator in actuality) in 1996 after stepping down from the New York family court bench.
While the women’s liberation movement was in full swing in 1965, I wouldn’t consider Judy Sheindlin a representative nor a product of that movement. She holds many traditionalist views from the era she was born into which is evident to anyone who follows her or watches her show.
I certainly would NOT characterize Judge Judy as a feminist.
I think her comments stem from her upbringing and life experiences. That she is twice divorced and thrice married (she married and divorced a man named Ronald Levy and married and divorced and remarried her husband Judge Jerry Sheindlin) might explain the basis of her remarks far better than dismissing them as feminist rhetoric.
Back in the 1960s and early 1970s, women couldn’t “take their husbands to the cleaners,” as many manosphere denizens like to point out. Women could not have credit in their name until 1973.
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/credit-cards/when-could-women-get-credit-cards/
However, women having the ability to earn their own income by having useful skills and knowledge is absolutely vital to their survival and the survival of their children.
All marriages end, either in divorce or death. Ergo, a woman who has marketable skills can survive if their spouse or partner leaves or dies. Being financially dependent on someone who suddenly leaves or passes away is quite devastating.
This is the point Judge Judy makes in her comments.
The point of being an educated, independent woman is not to spout feminist rhetoric and making the declaration “I don’t need a man,” but to be able to take care of herself and be able to build a better life for herself and her family, that includes her husband or partner. Being financially independent enables a woman to be a helpmate to her husband or partner and not a dependent.
No one, man or woman, should ever be completely financially dependent upon their spouse. People have to have the ability to make a living on their own.
Judge Judy hits it out of park again.
-The Rational Ram
The Rational Ram 
