Anita Hill, Christine Blasey Ford, and Social Media

When Anita Hill testified against Clarence Thomas because he sexually harassed her multiple times, she did so in front of an all white male committee. The Senate did confirm Thomas as associate justice of the Supreme Court. 

So what has changed?

According to a New York Times article that compares the situation of Anita Hill with Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, "The downfall of powerful figures like Harvey Weinstein, Charlie Rose and Bill O’Reilly after allegations of sexual misconduct brought the #MeToo movement center stage. The cultural moment has given victims of sexual assault a heightened platform from which to speak out." But has it? Women have been speaking out against sexual assault, survivors have been telling their stories, but no one cares to listen, or they listen but choose to decide it is not worthy of time or action.

Has the #metoo movement changed anything if the President of the U.S., who has been accused of sexually assaulting/harassing over 13 women, tweets his support for Kavanaugh? Has it if Blasey is still being asked to prove she isn't lying in front of a Republican committee which is all white men. 

So, I would say, the only real difference is that we have social media, and there is collective power in that.