It’s time for Clarence Thomas to go
Amid the sickening tales emerging about entertainment figures Harvey Weinstein, Louis C.K., Roy Moore, Kevin Spacey and so many more, there is a glimmer of hope: The #MeToo movement has emboldened survivors of assault and harassment to come forward. Many men are being held accountable for their behavior, and there are signs that new norms are developing, as more and more people recognize how serious the problem of sexual harassment is.
In this new environment, several on the left have begun reconsidering their support for Bill Clinton. Clinton should have resigned, columnist Matt Yglesias wrote at Vox. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., also said that Clinton should have resigned. Alyssa Rosenberg went even further in The Washington Post, arguing that Democrats even now should shun Clinton.
While some might say that it’s 20 years too late, it’s an important and healthy reckoning to have, and I admire them for it. As one liberal friend of mine said, this isn’t about apologizing to Republicans: This is about Democrats being honest to themselves and being better.
Those of us on the right could use a reckoning, too. Obviously, Donald Trump has no business being president; I opposed his candidacy and I oppose his presidency, so I don’t need to reiterate that further. The same is true for Roy Moore. But I’ve been thinking about Clarence Thomas and Anita Hill, and I think it’s time conservatives seriously reconsider our continued support for Thomas in light of his past.
As a conservative, Thomas was one of my role models. I am a fan of his judicial philosophy. Reading his story of rising from nothing, from a Geechee-dialect speaking black kid in Georgia, to Yale and the Supreme Court, was inspiring to me.
During his confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court, Thomas was accused of sexual harassment by a former employee of his. Hill claimed that Thomas made unwelcome advances to her and spoke about sex in graphics terms that made her uncomfortable. Thomas denied everything, of course, and was supported by prominent politicians. It was his word against hers, and he won out.
Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said “her story just doesn’t add up.” Alan Simpson, R-Wyo., notoriously spoke of “getting stuff over the transom about Professor Hill. I’ve got letters hanging out of my pockets. I’ve got faxes. I’ve got statements from Tulsa saying: ‘Watch out for this woman.’ ” David Brock (who was then right-wing) called Hill “a little bit nutty and a little bit slutty.”
Thomas called it a high-tech lynching for uppity blacks. Having seen how other minority conservatives were treated by the left, I found it convincing that the opposition was motivated by race and ideological nonconformance. But recent events have made me reconsider my knee-jerk defense.
It’s always a question of balance between believing the victims and avoiding mob mentality. But there are a few factors that tilt toward Hill’s version of the story.
It wasn’t exactly his word against hers; she had witnesses whom the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, did not call up. And Biden is a Democrat, so there goes the “they only attacked him because he’s conservative” narrative. Thomas was confirmed by a Senate under Democratic control. There was also one big part of the puzzle that never clicked. In Jeffrey Toobin’s book about the Supreme Court, he writes that reporters for obtained “information confirming that Thomas’ involvement with pornography far exceeded what the public had been led to believe” just after he was confirmed. (That juicy detail didn’t make it to print then because once he was confirmed, the story was considered finished.) The issue at hand is not Thomas’ entertainment predilections. But if he was dishonest about the videos, it’s conceivable that he lied about the rest, too.
Hill, meanwhile, had no reason to lie and had supporting evidence. Is it enough to stand up in the court of law? Maybe not. But the question was if Thomas was fit to sit on the Supreme Court, not if he should be prosecuted.
The severity of the claims against Thomas pales in comparison to the claims against Clinton, something other conservatives have pointed out. In response to someone comparing how Hillary treated Bill’s accusers with how Republicans treated Hill, Jonah Goldberg of the National Review tweeted, “You do realize the allegations against Clinton and Thomas aren’t comparable, right?”
Yet there’s an inconsistency to the logic. Are we defending Thomas because he is innocent or because his actions weren’t that bad? Until very recently, I probably would have responded similarly to Goldberg: Maybe Thomas did say some things he shouldn’t have, but he wasn’t accused of anything “serious.”
All along, in other words, I didn’t doubt Hill. I knew the truth was on her side. But I was subconsciously belittling her experience, and that was wrong. In 2017, post-Weinstein, we can’t let sexual harassment slide just because it doesn’t rise to the severity of rape, or because we believe that boys will be boys.
I believe Anita Hill. I believe that Clarence Thomas abused his authority to sexually harass a woman who worked for him. And lied about it. And smeared his accuser. And got away with it. As painful as it is to repudiate a man I respected, I believe Thomas should never have been confirmed and should resign.
Jay Kaganoff is a freelance writer based in Brooklyn. He has written for National Review Online and Commentary Magazine, among others. He wrote this for The Washington Post.