Cain v. Thomas

I've been wanting to post something meaningful about Anita Hill, in recognition of her twentieth year as a survivor of the Clarence Thomas hearings. I thought I would do some research first, so the piece would have some meat to it, beyond my own very subjective ranting. I thought I would read her book. Have you read it? I haven't gotten to it yet. So you see, I'm not quite ready to write something meaty about Anita Hill. But I've been thinking about her story, and all the events our country has withstood since then. I wonder... if her race were different, or if Thomas' race were different, how would that have changed - everything? I wonder if we had had a black President in office, how would that have effected - everything? By everything, I mean the trial; our national conversation about the trial; the bumper stickers that said, "I Believe You, Anita", as if a sane, educated woman would voluntarily humiliate herself, derail her successful career, and spend months under excruciating public scrutiny for the sake of telling a lie. With everything to lose and nothing to gain except the hope of maintaining some self respect, how could anyone believe she was lying?

Well, Clarence Thomas' wife thought she was lying. And she's clearly a great judge of character.

As I keep circling back to my need to write something meaty about Anita Hill, I ask myself, What will my angle be? My first thought: How would such a trial play out now, with a black President in office? How would the media coverage differ? What new kind of discomfort would such a spectacle raise?

Hey, kids! I think we're about to find out!

Herman Cain is the Republican party's black presidential candidate, with his revolutionary tax plan and rags-to-riches, American Dream life story. Now, a string of sexual harassment accusations has him center-stage. He suddenly has his first, named accuser. The fourth in a series, this lady's gone public. She has provided clear details about his methods, forcing dirty thoughts on anyone within earshot. Of course, Cain's wife of forty-four years says she knows him better than anyone, and he wouldn't do "something so silly", not like that.

Wow. I'm stuck with visions of Anita Hill describing a pubic hair on the rim of a Coke can. I'm recalling emphatic denials about a flowered dress stained with semen - wrong guy, I know. Wrong outcome too.

I'm watching:  How will we judge Herman Cain? How will we judge his accusers? How far will the race card be tossed?  How much have we learned in twenty years, Anita?