| By Boris Pavlov, Year 11
The media today seems to be dominated by Western politics, and most prominent are the events occurring in the United States of America. It seems that whenever I check the news, a new scandal is taking place. The latest: the appointment of Brett Kavanaugh as a Senate Justice. After the current president nominated him, serious concerns were raised about his view towards women’s rights and accessibility to birth control. I thought that this should have been enough to withdraw his nomination. However, it seems that even after Dr. Christine Blasey Ford came forward with sexual assault allegations against him, he was still being rushed to the position. In a country with increasingly restrictive rights for women, his appointment for life could spell disaster the state. These allegations by Dr. Ford only go to further the severity of the situation. In her testimony, she described in vivid detail the horrifying recount of her sexual assault, identifying Brett Kavanaugh as her rapist with 100% certainty. This fact is corroborated by her therapist, who confirmed that Dr. Ford related the event to her in 2012, and a polygraph taken by Dr. Ford. However, the Republican party continued to brutally push for his appointment. |
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| “IT SHOWS HOW LITTLE PEOPLE CAN TRUST THE HIGHEST COURT IN THE LAND, AS SOMEONE WHO HAS LIED UNDER OATH MULTIPLE TIMES IS STILL BEING NOMINATED FOR THE SUPREME COURT.” | During his hearing, Kavanaugh went into what could be called a fit of entitlement when questioned about the events and even lied repeatedly about his extensive drinking problems at the time of the event. |
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His composure was repulsive and seemed to shed even more credibility to his sexual assault of Dr. Ford. However, instead of being treated like an abuser, it is Dr. Ford who has been attacked. It has made me sick to listen to the way Dr. Ford has been treated during her testimony and outside it by senators, the government, and the public. |
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| Trump actively made fun of Dr. Ford at a rally in which the public joined in and laughed at the sexual assault victim, a scenario Dr. Ford described as what she had feared most when coming forward. | “IT’S TELLING PEOPLE THAT THEIR ACTIONS DON’T HAVE CONSEQUENCES, AND DARE I SAY AS A RESULT, PROMOTED SEXUAL HARASSMENT, AS IT EMPHASISES THAT THERE AREN’T CONSEQUENCES.” |
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The way in which sexual assault victims are treated as if they have done something criminally offensive in coming forward is nothing short of inhumane. The current justice system simply does not do enough to ensure that sexual assault is dealt with, instead placing rapists’ future lives above the traumatised ones of their victims. Dr. Ford’s testimony and those of the two other accusers should be regarded as heroic. Their ability to come forward at all with something so traumatising should be praised, not criticised from the moment they did so for waiting. It seems ridiculous that the scope of an FBI investigation was limited to one week, where they could not interview willing Dr. Ford and countless applicants for interviews, nor Brett Kavanaugh. The Republican party’s push for his hasty appointment with unethical, immoral and complete disregard for the message sexual assault victims have been sent through the treatment of Dr. Ford, and the refusal to appoint another judge, is abhorrent. They have shown that they would rather elevate an abuser into a position of power and call accusers liars, instead of providing justice. |
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| “I THINK THAT HIS CONTINUED NOMINATION, DESPITE THE NUMEROUS ACCUSATIONS AND EVIDENCE, ALONG WITH THE RUSHED FBI INVESTIGATION (WHICH INCLUDED INTERVIEW WITH NEITHER KAVANAUGH NOR FORD) SHOWS THAT HIS APPOINTERS DO NOT CARE. IT TELLS SEXUAL ASSAULT VICTIMS THAT THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT CARE, OR SIMPLY THAT THEY DO NOT BELIEVE THEM AND OVERALL THAT THEY DON’T MATTER.” | His appointment to the Supreme Court with 50 votes to 48, has sent a message to all victims and protesters that the ‘highest court in the land’ and the Republican party, of which only a single Senator voted against Kavanaugh, does not care about their trauma or opinion. The process of events have left me completely disgusted and infuriated at the way politics have led to his appointment, and at the perpetuation of sexism and privilege it has brought in intolerable ways for a modern society. |
The Absurdity of Brett Kavanaugh
