Trigger Warning: This article deals with issues of sexual assault and includes a description of the alleged assault by Judge Brett Kavanaugh on Dr. Christine Blasey Ford while they were in high school.
Fox News ended a recent article about the state of Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination hearings with the phrase “And win or lose, the math is the math is the math” but for a lot of women around the country, this nomination is about a lot more than math. The #MeToo movement let survivors of sexual assault know that they were not alone but society’s misconceptions about sex and sexual assault might put another predator on the Supreme Court.
Society tends to have distressing ideas about what behaviors “count.” When we get into issues of sexual assault, this idea takes on a more sinister nature. If a woman experiences “just” assault rather than rape, like in Dr. Ford’s allegations, she should just be grateful that the assault didn’t “go further.” This sentiment was even expressed by Dr. Ford during her testimony this past Thursday. Scroll far enough in any twitter thread about women sharing their experiences with sexual harassment and you will find a man telling them to “not let a little grope” ruin their whole life.
Actions do not need to pass a particular degree of severity to be wrong and women with experiences far less “severe” than Dr. Ford still experience trauma and their stories still deserve to be heard.Yet, society argues that these “less serious” assaults merit “less serious” punishments, or that they should “stop counting” after some period of time. That seems to be the most common argument for disregarding Dr. Ford, that the alleged event happened so long ago. Dr. Ford’s husband answered this criticism when he said, “Supreme Court nominees should be held to a higher standard.”
Most troubling for me was the clip from CNN’s focus group of Republican women. One woman said, “What boy hasn’t done this in high school?” My stomach dropped. What boy hasn’t dragged a fifteen-year-old girl into a bedroom, held her down, covered her mouth, and tried to remove her clothes while laughing? I hope to God most boys haven’t done that.
Brett Kavanaugh’s defense was that he was a virgin through high school, but entire sectors of the internet prove that celibacy is not evidence of respect towards women.
Watching the hearing on Thursday, I was struck by the feeling that I knew Dr. Ford. I often say that I was raised by a village of strong women (and my father) and I felt as if I could see Dr. Ford amongst them. She could have picked me up from soccer practice or came over to play cards with my mom. She had to ask what the word “exculpatory” meant. People will argue that she is attention seeking or a political agent but what I saw was that she is a remarkably intelligent psychologist who has been dealing with trauma for far too long and just wants her life back.
We remember what is most important to us, the things that make an emotional impact. Most people can remember their first kiss, most people remember that person’s name, very few people remember the exact date years later. Dr. Ford explains the psychology of this far better than I do, and everyone should watch her testimony.
Watching Judge Kavanaugh’s testimony, I felt dread. This was any angry man, something most women are taught to fear before they make it out of middle school. He deliberately and repeatedly made a point to say that he was not calling Dr. Ford’s story a lie but saying that it was just not him. That somehow felt worse than calling her liar. At least liars have some agency. Rather, the picture Judge Kavanaugh painted was that of a victim who is mistaken or unreliable.
As a woman, I was angry at this portrayal, but as a citizen, I was far more worried about the blatant distrust and partisan paranoia displayed by Judge Kavanaugh. Before the allegations came out, I disagreed with Judge Kavanaugh’s misinformed positions on birth control, Roe v Wade, and many other issues. Early this week, I opposed his nomination because I too believed that Supreme Court Judges should be held to a higher standard and I believed Dr. Ford. After his testimony, I further oppose his nomination because I do not believe he has the temperament or the ability to be unbiased as is required of a judge on the highest court in this country.
Dr. Ford told us that she came forward because she believed it was her duty as a citizen of a democracy to tell the truth. As a citizen of a democracy, I am terrified of a Supreme Court Justice who displays such obvious anger towards an entire half of this country. On one hand, Judge Kavanaugh could shape the Supreme Court for decades and even without the allegations, I would not trust him.
On the other hand, the allegations do exist and ignoring them is unconscionable. Morally, we cannot permit someone who has even allegedly showed such a disturbing pattern of behavior towards women to make moral and legal judgements in the highest court in our land.
As more allegations come out against Judge Kavanaugh, I know one thing for certain. I believe Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and I strongly urge Congress to vote against Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court.