In Palo Alto, we shape the future. This San Francisco Bay city is the birthplace of Silicon Valley. But one evening last month at his Stanford University, it was mostly about the past that he was going to talk about. On the way to the facility, I was almost unable to contain my excitement and nervousness. I was going to hear, then meet, the person whose courage had marked my adolescence.
In October 1991, Anita Hill was 35 years old and taught commercial law at the University of Oklahoma. 2000 km from the classrooms, in Washington, President Bush Sr. proposed appointing Clarence Thomas a judge to the Supreme Court of the United States. He’s a qualified candidate, certainly, but as is still the case today, Clarence Thomas is controversial. Privately, women told journalists and political aides that the candidate had disturbing behavior with women and many mentioned the name of Anita Hill.
In the blink of an eye, Anita Hill goes from near-anonymity to unsolicited notoriety by finding herself in the spotlight when she testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee, made up entirely of men, including a certain Joe Biden, then senator from Delaware. Several members of the Commission try to humiliate Anita Hill during the painful exercise. Butme Hill remains unfazed and elegant. At the time, nearly 86% of Americans watched at least some television viewing.
As a spectacular show of support, 1,600 influential black women purchased a full page in the New York Times in which we can read a sentence that sums it all up: “African-American women in their own defense. »
PHOTO PAUL HOSEFROS, THE NEW YORK TIMES ARCHIVES
Anita Hill takes the oath before testifying at the confirmation hearing for Clarence Thomas’ nomination to the Supreme Court on April 1er October 1991.
Hi, barbie !
On the eve of Anita Hill’s conference at Stanford, the announcement of the finalists for the next Oscars ceremony set social networks on fire. Even Hillary Clinton added a drop of kerosene with an Instagram post, liked by nearly half a million people. “Greta and Margot, even though it may hurt to win the box office without winning gold, your millions of fans love you,” wrote the one who, in 2016, won the popular vote but lost the presidential election . Greta is Greta Gerwig and Margot is Margot Robbie – respectively director and lead actress of the film barbie. Neither was nominated for an Oscar.
This is not the first time that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, responsible for the Oscars, has neglected to recognize the quality and impact of a film or to nominate deserving artists. Talk to Spike Lee or Barbra Streisand.
Despite the very regrettable appointment of Clarence Thomas, Anita Hill’s testimony will not have been in vain. In 1991, 70% of Americans believed Clarence Thomas, but two years later, as many believed Mme Hill. A shift crystallized by the “I believe Anita Hill” t-shirt, which was all the rage at the time.
Anita Hill’s courage in front of the Senate exposed the experience of millions of women by describing it. Without Professor Hill, there probably would not have been a #metoo movement. And the legacy of all this can be measured: today, in the United States, 70 anti-workplace harassment laws have been adopted in 22 states. Anita Hill is an icon, a true1 – in a world where the word is often misused.
Recognize progress
In 2018, the bad movie repeats itself. Brett Kavanagh is Donald Trump’s choice for new Supreme Court justice. This time, it is Dr. Christine Blasey Ford who testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Mme Blasey Ford has accused Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were both in college. Despite the testimony of Mme Blasey Ford, the case ended with Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court, where he still serves.
However, something extraordinary nevertheless happens during this testimony. As support, 1,600 men in turn purchased a full-page advertisement in the New York Times to publish a sentence which sums up everything and, above all, which crystallizes the progress of the last 30 years: “We believe Anita Hill. We also believe Christine Blasey Ford. »
In the immediate wake of the discontent of fans of the film barbie Following the announcement of the Oscar nominations, the two women involved remained silent for a long time, speaking out only to express their gratitude for the film’s success. Probably because they knew that a nomination and even a statuette are no guarantee of subsequent success.
It may also be because, a bit like Anita Hill, Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie know how to measure the victories that matter most.
The film barbie grossed over US$1.38 billion worldwide to become the highest-grossing feature film in Warner Bros. history, and the highest-grossing ever made by a female filmmaker in the United States, in addition to being the largest cinema release in the world in 2023. Progress is there. And the real victory for Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig is the new negotiating power they have. Both are owners of production houses.
PHOTO ASSOCIATED PRESS
Margot Robbie in the film barbie
According to a study by the organization Women In Film, in 2018, only 18.6% of studio-financed film contracts and 35.7% of studio-financed television contracts were signed with companies that were owned by women. And only 18% of production companies that received non-studio funding were also owned by women. The success of the film barbie will certainly help shake up these figures and the perception of “bankability” of women in the industry.
Victory is not an end in itself. Even if they were nominated for the Oscars, Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig might not have won a statuette. What seems to me to matter more than what shines or shocks is progress.
1. Watch the documentary Anita: Speaking Thruth to Power (in English) on YouTube
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reference: www.lapresse.ca