Ruth Marcus' column on our op-ed page today pointed out how Clarence Thomas' revisionist history about the Anita Hill controversy is easy to dispute. Thomas disses Hill -- again -- in his recent book. He sounds like the victim. But in my biased opinion, Hill emerged the winner then and remains the winner in this battle. And her courage to speak out 16 years ago changed our culture in ways that reverberate to this day. According to the Center for History and New Media:

The Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas controversy had other long-term consequences beyond Justice Thomas life-term on the Supreme Court. Foremost, national awareness about sexual harassment in the workplace heightened considerably. According to Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filings, sexual harassment cases have more than doubled, from 6,127 in 1991 to 15,342 in 1996. Over the same period, awards to victims under federal laws nearly quadrupled, from $7.7 million to $27.8 million.

Another repercussion of the Hill-Thomas controversy was the increased involvement of women in politics. The media heralded the 1992 election year as the "Year of the Woman" when a record number of women ran for public office and won. In the U.S. Senate, eleven women ran and five won seats--including one incumbent candidate. In the House of Representatives, twenty-four women won new seats. Many commentators saw this increase as a direct reaction to the Thomas nomination. His appointment dismayed many women, who felt that Anita Hill's allegations were not taken seriously by a Senate that was 98 percent male.

What are your retrospective thoughts on the Thomas-Hill controversy?

(Photo of Anita Hill from Nova Southeastern University Web site)

Originally post at A Matter Of Opinion

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