In 1991, Clarence Thomas was nominated to the Supreme Court by George H. W. Bush. However, the nomination was not the simple procedure of debating if he was the right fit like with previous Justices as he was accused of sexual harassment by Anita Hill. Ms. Hill testified about times when Thomas in the past made unsavory comments and used his power in work situation over her. Politicians invalidated her testimony and character, and Thomas still resides on the Supreme Court today.
The similarities between this case and the situation with Brett Kavanaugh is striking, but just as time as moved forward so has the way we handle these situations, but it is not necessarily an improvement. Dr. Ford testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee about how Kavanaugh assaulted and attempted to rape her at a highschool party. Just as the case was with Anita Hill, Republican politicians invalidated Dr. Ford, but in our age of instant communications and digital media it is easy for anyone to weigh in on the matter. Our current President has an affinity to taking to twitter, which has caused us to look at social media about politics, but has also allowed for the spread of disinformation.
The confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to The Supreme Court of The United States of America last Saturday (October 6, 2018) not only allows the moral integrity of our politicians to come into question, but also the whole democratic system. The confirmation shows the many ways that our democracy can fail the people and furthers the image of misogyny that is already rampant in America.
One could say that the organization of the senate is undemocratic in itself as it is not representative of the majority. Each state has two representatives, despite every state having a different population. This means a state like Kansas has as many representatives as a state like New York despite the vastly different populations, meaning that the citizens of New York are less represented. Therefore, when a vote of such influence is called it can seem undemocratic.
In the era of the “#metoo” movement, the confirmation of Kavanaugh is a huge set back and shows a lack of respect for women’s rights. What is the most worrying part of the testimony given by Dr. Ford on Thursday the 27th of September, was not that she was not believed, but she was believed and it did not make a difference. When a case such as Kavanaugh‘s is so publicly absolved, it normalizes harassment and attacks and furthers rape culture in America. Allowing violence committed by young men to seem less important, furthering the toxic culture of “boys will be boys”. Even the President stated it is, “A scary time for young men in America”, which is not only ignorant but also normalizes victim blaming and rape culture. The evidence against the good character of Kavanaugh when he was a teenager is stacking and his testimony in defense did not give any peace of mind. Avoiding questions and giving nearly incomprehensible answers, Kavanaugh not only did not give a convincing image of his teenage self, but also of his current self.
Supreme Court Justices are supposed to be pillars of integrity, not partisans and able to make decisions without emotional influence. These are not the values that Kavanaugh portrayed during his testimony, calling into question if he really has right the character to be a Supreme Court Justice. Kavanaugh has made partisan statements claiming he has been attacked by the democrats and was extremely angry during his testimony. Not only that but his responses were inappropriate at times. Mentioning “beer” twenty-nine times during his short testimony and attacking when asked if he has ever blacked out with “have you?”, Kavanaugh did not show the character of a Supreme Court Justice.
Supreme Court Justices are famously confirmed for life, unless there is an impeachment, meaning that this decision made by the senate 50-48 in favor for Kavanaugh has inconceivable effects. However, it is our job to never forget the means in which Kavanaugh came to be where he is today.