https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/18/opinion/sunday/the-hillary-effect.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fpolitics&action=click&contentCollection=politics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront
This New York Times OpEd explores the idea of how the campaign against sexual assault would be different if Hillary Clinton were president, rather than Donald Trump.
Susan Fowler, who wrote the blog post about sexual assault about Uber that lead to the CEO being fired, thinks it would be different. She stated "before Donald Trump's election, women in Silicon Valley were speaking up but no one was listening... but it was different this year because Trump won and people felt powerless". Donald Trump has been accused of sexual assault by multiple women, and also seems to support other men who have been similarly accused.
But would having Hillary Clinton in office really create a better environment for people talking about and fighting against sexual assault? I am not convinced she would be much better, especially considering the fact that with Hillary as President, Bill Clinton would be second in command. People may be afraid to speak up with Hillary as President because of Bill Clinton's history with women, specifically Monica Lewinsky. Moreover, Hillary supposedly demonized women as "liars, bimbos, trailer trash, or troubled souls when it seemed clear they were truthful about her philandering husband".
Clearly, "politics is clouding the issue of sexual harassment", and this has been the case for many years. Nevertheless, it is unclear if having Hillary, or someone else, as President would help resolve the sexual harassment war.
I find this a very fascinating, relevant question about politics in the U.S today. I, too, wonder if we were under a different presidency and if the political climate was different would women feel as empowered and able to speak out against sexual harassers and predators.
ReplyDeleteThis is a really interesting, thought-provoking post! It's hard to tell what the effects of Hillary Clinton as president would be instead of Trump during this time where sexual harassment issues are being exposed. To take an optimistic approach, all I can say is that while Trump has caused so much harm to so many people, at least his election has accompanied one positive thing, women finding their voice, being both outspoken and unapologetic, and now having the audience to be listened to.
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