Race and Gender Issues

Anita Hill

Wednesday night I saw Anita Hill speak on campus, and she was awesome.

From her speech, I really took away some good food for thought: she said when it comes to Supreme Court nominees, we need to worry more about judicial philosophy as much as we do about credentials. She said the fact that credentials are emphasized over philosophy is elitist (looking for Ivy League degrees) sexist, and racist.

She also said that the way that Bush introduced Harriet Miers versus the way he presented Samuel Alito and John Roberts shows his own sexist bias. Bush emphasized Alito's and Roberts's experience and legal pedigrees while saying of Miers that he "knows her heart."

To be fair, Miers has no experience as a judge, while Roberts had at least two years and Alito has 15 years.

At the end of the speech, I asked her who she would pick for the Supreme Court. She mentioned Sonia Sotomayor, a Yale classmate of hers. But she emphasized that if the president were looking for qualified women, that the list is long.

The CDC launched a campaign aimed at educating young men about sexual assault. (If you have trouble reading the article, go to bugmenot.com for a login.) One of the posters reads "So when she was too drunk to decide, I decided we shouldn't."

Obviously I like these. Whether they have the intended effect remains to be seen.

One thing I do know is that rapists and abusers only reform when their male peers disapprove of violence. So of course it's encouraging, but reducing sexual assualt and other violence is a complicated web of problems.

Catholic hospitals and EC post-rape

Great story in Women's ENews by the husband of a rape crisis worker. He writes about the difficulties in getting emergency contraception for rape victims at a Catholic hospital.

This story takes place in Chicago, so I'm wondering whether there could be any legislation pending that would force hospitals to give emergency contraception to rape victims regardless of the institution's beliefs. That seems to be the only solution to ensuring that rape victims get the help they need.

Thank god for Pete Carroll

I'm a die-hard Trojan fan (since it's my alma mater) and a story in today's LA Times increased my respect for Pete Carroll even more. He brought in an abstinence speaker to warn players against risky behavior. No real details about what was said during the speech.

But therein lies the rub: was the speaker warning players against situations that might put them in a position in which they would be accused? Or was she saying "hey, you're not calling the shots here. Rape is rape is rape."

Boss-Subordinate sex can constitute sexual harassment

But it's not what you think.

The summary is that two female employees at a California prison were not having sex with their boss, but they contended that sex between the boss and the plaintiffs' equals constituted a hostile working environment.

I count this in my big fat list of Duh.

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By Kim Curtis, Associated Press Writer

SAN FRANCISCO – A manager who's engaged in sexual relations with subordinates can create a hostile work environment, resulting in sexual harassment of other employees who are not involved, the California Supreme Court ruled Monday.

The case involves former employees at the Valley State Prison for Women in Chowchilla who complained about then-warden Lewis Kuykendall, who was sexually involved with at least three women at the same time.

The plaintiffs, Edna Miller and the now-deceased Frances Mackey, who were not sexually involved with the warden, alleged sexual harassment against the Department of Corrections and sued for damages. A lower court ruled against the women, saying Miller and Mackey "were not themselves subjected to sexual advances and were not treated any differently than male employees."

There are no words

Gang Rape of Girl Shocks Pico Rivera

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I seriously hope that every single one of those (wow, I can't think of a word severe enough here) are charged and convicted, even if they stood by. The troubling thing is, I know that some people in the community will probably try to pin the blame on her because she accepted a ride from the boys who raped her.