Anita Hill Case Study

Anita Hill is an African American woman who is a law professor and attorney. In 1991, Anita worked for Clarence Thomas, a former Supreme Court nominee, as his assistant. A few months after, he asked her to go out with him and she rejected him. He sexually harassed her with disturbing comments and pornography. It took her ten years to have the courage and strength to testify. As she says in her testimony, it would have been easier and more comfortable for her to stay quiet, but she knew she had to take eventually act for his behaviors. And so, she did. The court hearings lasted up to three days and was broad casted live. Thomas fought for his innocence and denied the allegations. In result, the senate confirmed Thomas 52 to 48. He also called …show more content…
It is important to realize that the Judiciary Committee were all men, again, not a single woman was chaired. Fourteen men questioned Anita’s allegations. They weren’t planning to air her allegations which made women furious, including seven women members of the House of Representatives. They all fought for a respectful hearing. They believed that they weren’t taking Anita’s case serious. Not to mention, Anita was attacked during her hearing with disrespectful comments. It took Anita ten years to testify against Thomas. The men of the committee found it hard to believe her allegations because it took her so long to testify and she continued to work for Thomas. Her response was that she didn’t know what to do at the moment, but she knew she couldn’t lose her job. Thus, there was a positive side to this case. After Anita’s 3-day court hearing many girls came forward about their experiences with sexual harassment. In fact, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sexual harassment cases doubled after …show more content…
For one thing, I am shocked with this case because it didn’t have to do with race discrimination, but with gender discrimination. Sadly, gender discrimination still happens today and it makes me think that it will never come to an end. It happens in workplaces, schools, and in politics. I strongly agree they shouldn’t have had all men on the Judiciary committee. It wasn’t fair to her or to anyone woman that was watching because it showed empowerment from men. I would have requested and fought for a new hearing as well. This case also makes me question to myself, why would she wait so long to testify and continue to work for Thomas Clarence. This leads to confusion, and no one will ever really know the truth. Since, Thomas was a former Supreme Court nominee, it’s misleading to truthfully know if the Judiciary committee sided with him because they didn’t want to leave a “bad image” in the Supreme Court whether they knew the truth or not. This case became so public and even after twenty-one years, Anita agreed to make a documentary for the same reasons I would. To let girls in this generation and future generations that it is okay to reach out for help and not to be scared if one is a victim of sexual harassment. This case is important because it shows gender diversity and power