I write to express my deep concern about the Kavanaugh nomination and to call attention to the nature of the allegations and suggest that these are not the kinds of behaviors that should be easily excused. Too often, in conversations locally and in national commentary, I hear the incidents being dismissed as “so long ago” or excused by the phrase “boys will be boys” or forgiven because “we all did things we regret when we were young.”
I would ask anyone who is tempted to be dismissive of the allegations to more closely examine what the accusers are saying. Christine Blasey Ford’s very detailed account accuses Kavanaugh of attempted rape, saying he held her down. Deborah Ramirez alleges that Kavanaugh publicly exposed himself to her, shoved his genitals in her face and told her to “kiss it.” Most serious of all, the sworn allegations by Julie Swetnick say that Kavanaugh’s group of friends regularly preyed on women after pressuring them to drink too much and that she saw Kavanaugh lining up outside a bedroom where “numerous boys” were “waiting for their ‘turn’ with a girl inside.” No young woman would consent to have a line of boys take turns so this is nothing less than gang rape.
I graduated from DHS in 1997 and in my high school years and college years that followed at University of Colorado Boulder, then often vying for Playboy Magazine’s top party school, I certainly did my share of drinking and partying. I did and said embarrassing things, as did others, but I think it’s important to note that the type of behavior many of us engaged in and would like to be excused for is nothing like what’s being described by Kavanaugh’s accusers.
I am not aware of ever having been at a party in high school or in college where anyone was raped, and if I or my peers, male or female, had been aware of a rape in progress I am certain we would have felt a strong moral obligation to intervene and stop it. When a girl, or anyone, drank too much, her friends and/or boyfriend certainly did not allow anyone to take advantage of her – they would help, holding her hair back as she was sick, making sure she got home safe and seeking medical attention if needed.
We should also keep in mind the very special nature of the hearings and investigations that are unfolding. Kavanaugh is not being tried criminally, so the question is not his guilt beyond a shadow of a doubt. He is being nominated to a lifetime appointment on the highest court in the land, where, for most of the rest of most of our lives, he will be the deciding swing vote on many key cases that ask him to weigh competing legal values and ultimately use his moral compass to make the best decisions.
To me, even if he was not part of any gang rape but surrounded himself with men who were and did nothing to stop it, that alone would disqualify him and suggest we should appoint one of the other highly qualified judges. What would it say about our values as a society, and what message would it send to young men and women, if after sworn testimony from Ford that everyone on both sides of the aisle is describing as very credible and in which she accused him of attempted rape, we nonetheless allowed him to go forward and become one of the most powerful people in the country?
To me it would say that young men are not accountable for what they do at drunken parties, and that even when accusers are believed, we do not collectively care enough to ensure what they say matters.
Again, no one is saying Kavanaugh should go to jail. But we should not allow someone about whose moral character we have these serious questions to be confirmed to the Supreme Court.
I believe it is important that men and women stand together at this time and say clearly that we will not tolerate abuses of power and we will not stand by as men who perpetrated abuses are elevated to even greater heights. Slowly we will make progress in the battle for equality, respect and dignity for all people, a battle that I believe many men are ready to fight vigorously alongside our female fellow citizens.
Micah May
Durango
