Anita Hill is speaking out about the new allegation that surfaced against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh this week.
The law professor called on the federal government to implement a “fair and neutral” way to investigate sexual misconduct complaints after allegations surfaced.
Hill accused Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas of workplace sexual harassment during his confirmation hearing back in 1991 when she was a law professor at the University of Oklahoma. In the statement released Friday, she said that she understood “firsthand what happens when such a process is weaponized against an accuser and no one should have to endure that again.”
An unidentified woman claimed in a letter to Democratic lawmakers that Kavanaugh, who faces a confirmation vote from the Senate Judiciary Committee next week, tried to rape her when they were in high school. The allegations were published in a New Yorker article by Ronan Farrow and Jane Mayer.
According to the article, the incident took place in the early 1980s, when Kavanaugh was a student at Georgetown Preparatory School in Washington D.C. The woman alleged in the letter that Kavanaugh held her down at a party and attempted to force himself on her. She claimed that Kavanaugh and his friend, who had been drinking, turned up music to muffle the sound of protests, and Kavanaugh covered her mouth with his hand. She was able to free herself.
Kavanaugh denies the allegation.
The woman accusing him of misconduct has not come forward publicly, and Hill said she understands why.
“The reluctance of someone to come forward demonstrates that even in the #MeToo era, it remains incredibly difficult to report harassment, abuse or assault by people in power.”
Last December, Hill received an apology from the Chairman of that infamous hearing in 1991 — former Vice President Joe Biden.
“I wish I had been able to do more for Anita Hill. I owe her an apology,” he said.