Anita Hill
The real problem is that the way that power is given out in our society pits us against each other.Collection: Society
One of the things I was taught in law school is that I'd never be able to think the same again - that being a lawyer is something that's part of who I am as an individual now.Collection: Legal
But I think it would be irresponsible for me not to say what I really believe in my heart to be true - that there are some serious inequities that we face as women and that we can work to address these inequities.Collection: Women
I'm not sure I can say there is a clean line between me as an individual and me as a lawyer.Collection: Legal
We have a history of gender and racial bias on our court that continues to undermine the system. Excluding individuals based on race is antagonistic to the pursuit of justice.Collection: History
I resent the idea that people would blame the messenger for the message, rather than looking at the content of the message itself.
Testifying has helped me understand that one individual's behavior and actions make a difference. That my actions are important to people other than myself.
I did what my conscience told me to do, and you can't fail if you do that.
But the issue of sexual harassment is not the end of it. There are other issues - political issues, gender issues - that people need to be educated about.
I think, though, as African-American women, we are always trained to value our community even at the expense of ourselves, and so we attempt to protect the African-American community.
I became the messenger who had to be killed.
I have no personal vendetta against Clarence Thomas. I seek only to provide the committee with information which it may regard as relevant.
I am really proud to be a part in whatever way of women becoming active in the political scene. I think it was the first time that people came to terms with the reality of what it meant to have a Senate made up of 98 men and two women.
If you think about the way the hearings were structured, the hearings were really about Thomas' race and my gender.
What we really need to be understanding is that all of these things matter and they all stem from the fact that certain people live with power and authority and they want to maintain it.
What I wanted was for everyone listening to understand that these things mattered - not necessarily for me, but in this particular forum they mattered in terms of whether of not we were getting a person who should sit on the Supreme Court.
The FBI has had a history of sex discrimination complaints brought against it, as well as race discrimination.
It would have been more comfortable to remain silent.
Because I was extremely uncomfortable talking about sex with him at all and particularly in such a graphic way, I told him that I did not want to talk about these subjects.
When I think of what has happened in a larger sense, beyond myself, then I would not change anything.
Certainly my life will not ever be as private and discreet, and perhaps I should even use the word insulated, as it was before.
During this period at the Department of Education, my working relationship with Judge Thomas was positive.
For my undergraduate work, I went to Oklahoma State University and graduated from there in 1977.
I see myself as an educator.
I thought that by saying no and explaining my reasons my employer would abandon his social suggestions. However, to my regret, in the following few weeks, he continued to ask me out on several occasions.
I was aware, however, that telling at any point in my career could adversely affect my future career.
In July of 1983, I left Washington, DC area and have had minimal contact with Judge Clarence Thomas since.
My parents are older, and they lead a somewhat sheltered life. It was difficult to talk with them about things that were embarrassing to me, and that I had never spoken to them about.
Telling the world is the most difficult experience of my life, but it is very close to having to live through the experience that occasion this meeting.
The experience of testifying and the aftermath have changed my life.
Well, of course it was a very trying time for me, and fortunately I had a lot of people who were supportive. A lot of people who were writing and calling and saying they were praying for me. Some people sent me Scripture, and that helped.
We've got to understand that all disenfranchised people have something in common...The pursuit of justice really is about equality for everyone.Collection: People
You can't always expect a certain result, but you can expect to do your best.Collection: Results
Most women who are harassed don't come forward, they don't complain because they're skeptical of the process, or they don't think anything is going to come of it if they are found to have been harassed. We know from some very public cases that sexual assault isn't always punished even by the courts in the way that they should be. So, we have got to figure out, how are we going to embed women's experiences in the processes, so that they trust the processes, that there are fair investigations that get to the truth, and then there is appropriate punishment when abuse occurs?Collection: Thinking
calls for equal treatment are often seen as calls for 'special treatment' in situations where discrimination has become the norm.Collection: Equal Treatment
But I think it would be irresponsible for me not to say what I really believe in my heart to be true - that there are some serious inequities that we face as women and that we can work to address these inequitiesCollection: Believe
Testifying has helped me understand that one individual's behavior and actions make a difference. That my actions are important to people other than myselfCollection: Differences
Many women are harassed, one in three between the ages of 18 and 34, by one poll. And we need to figure out if, in fact, we are going to enable them to come forward with their complaints, as opposed to enabling harassers and abusers to continue their behavior.Collection: Age
we need to turn the question around to look at the harasser, not the target. We need to be sure that we can go out and look anyone who is a victim of harassment in the eye and say, 'You do not have to remain silent anymore.Collection: Eye
I am hopeful that others who have suffered sexual harassment will not become discouraged by my experience, but instead will find the strength to speak out about this serious problem.Collection: Speaks Out
I think there's more support today. I think there's better understanding today. And there's a better appreciation for the fact that if any community is going to prosper, if any community is going to be seen at its best, that the women in that community have to be viewed as equally as important as the men. And [women] have to be able to live outside of boundaries that are placed on them because of their gender. As well as their race or their religion.Collection: Appreciation
If I can mean to people - if I can symbolize the ability to pursue gender equality, racial equality, and to be truthful about our experiences, then, absolutely, that's what I want to be.Collection: Mean
I thought that by saying no and explaining my reasons my employer would abandon his social suggestions. However, to my regret, in the following few weeks, he continued to ask me out on several occasionsCollection: Regret
What we really need to be understanding is that all of these things matter and they all stem from the fact that certain people live with power and authority and they want to maintain itCollection: People
I work every day to live up to my mother's model. She was a very proud woman. And she really prepared me to go off into the world as a proud daughter.Collection: Daughter
I became the messenger who had to be killedCollection: Messengers
The experience of testifying and the aftermath have changed my lifeCollection: Aftermath
Whether we call it a job or a career, work is more than just something we do. It is a part of who we are.Collection: Jobs
The FBI has had a history of sex discrimination complaints brought against it, as well as race discriminationCollection: Sex
In July of 1983, I left Washington, DC area and have had minimal contact with Judge Clarence Thomas sinceCollection: July