Anita Hill, 30 years later: Biden ‘apology’ for Clarence Thomas hearing ‘wasn’t enough’
With a book hitting shelves Tuesday, legal scholar Anita Hill is reminiscing about the 30 years that have passed since she spoke out against the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, which included testifying in front of 14 male senators, headed by now-president Joe Biden.
The Yale Law School grad appeared on “Good Morning America” Monday. She told Robin Roberts that alleging she’d been sexually harassed by Thomas “changed just about every aspect” of her life.
Hill told Roberts she realized that speaking out about sexual misconduct wasn’t a bell that could be unrung and that being a symbol of “gender violence” would forever be part of her identity, though it took a while for her to fully understand the breadth of all that entails. When people reached out to Hill to talk about their various experiences with victimization, she saw a common thread.
Hill also said that then-Chairman Biden’s 2019 expression of “regret for what she’d endured” when he presided over her testimony, was too little too late.
“The apology was a long time coming,” she chuckled. “It took almost 30 years. I’m not sure that he quite understood how much harm the senate hearing and his control, his lack of control of those hearings, did to all of us.”
In addition to letting Thomas speak before Hill, which reportedly wasn’t the original plan, Biden and his team declined to listen to testimony about the Supreme Court nominee from three other women. While Biden didn’t vote in favor of Thomas’ nomination, President H.W. Bush’s nominee passed the senate vote. Biden later co-sponsored the Violence Against Women Act, which some saw an an attempt at atonement, The Hill reported.
Shortly before moving into the White House, Biden reached out to her privately, but offered no public apology.
“I think, unfortunately, the personal apology wasn’t enough,” she said. “What I really wanted was somebody who was going to commit to doing something about this massive problem of gender violence that we have in this country that’s hurting everyone.”
In her new book, “Believing: Our 30-Year Journey to End Gender Violence,” Hill said that she believed her ordeal with Thomas moved the national conversation forward with regards to the way women are treated. That includes the #MeToo movement. But Hill told ABC, her mission is ongoing.
“I still am not at the point where I can say I advise everyone to come forward,” she said. “I don’t.”
What she does advise, according to Hill, is that women who come forward with claims of abuse need to understand the process they’re entering into when speaking out. The 65-year-old author and professor said the nation deserved “better leadership” when it comes to calling out physical, vocational and emotional mistreatment of women.
“I’m talking about the president, as well as the president and CEO of every company and university,” Hill said.
Justice Thomas has denied any wrongdoing toward Hill. He is still serving on the nation’s highest court. Biden told Teen Vogue in 2017 that he “believed” Hill. When Biden visited “Good Morning America” in 2019, he told Roberts, “As the committee chairman, I take responsibility that she did not get treated well. I take responsibility for that.”
