In wake of the sexual assault allegations against now Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, people were quick to assume those allegations were false.
Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, along with two other accusers made sexual misconduct allegations against Kavanaugh from the 1980s when they were high school and college students.
Regardless of the time from the incident and the public allegations, why are people quick to assume these allegations are false? Even Donald Trump was quick to assume so.
“I have no doubt that, if the attack on Dr. Ford was as bad as she says, charges would have been immediately filed with local Law Enforcement Authorities by either her or her loving parents. I ask that she bring those filings forward so that we can learn date, time, and place,” said Trump via Twitter.
When men are the ones coming forward with their allegations, however, they are praised for their bravery, but why?
How is it that a man’s word is valued more than the word of a woman?
When men came out decades later with accusations against the Catholic church, many were quick to call these men brave and offer support.
“More than 4,000 US Roman Catholic priests had faced sexual abuse allegations in the last 50 years, in cases involving more than 10,000 children-mostly boys,” said a church commissioned report.
So if the numbers speak truth, why is the president quick to dismiss sexual misconduct allegations? Possibly due to the fact he faced his own.
Many of the allegations Trump has faced have been from beauty pageant contestants. Up until 2015, he owned the Miss Universe Organization before he sold the organization. His first wife also made her own allegation against her then husband.
If the President of the United States is held to such a low standard, what message are we sending to victims? If victims of sexual assault aren’t able to come forward and tell their stories without being ridiculed, what does that say about society and where we are headed?
Regardless, society needs to continue to evolve. Women have been objectified for a long time, but who would think even when it came to the most traumatic experiences.
Even when women are at their most vulnerable, somehow even the president has blamed them for what men should be held accountable for.