Fighting for gender justice in the courts, in public policy, and in our society.
Justice for her. Justice for all.

[link removed] [[link removed]]

Dear John,

Almost three years ago, our country witnessed a master class in courage as Dr. Christine Blasey Ford shared her truth with the world. Today’s report from the New York Times that her testimony against Brett Kavanaugh was grossly mishandled by the FBI and the Trump White House leaves me with the same emotions I had in 2018: frustrated, furious, and motivated to fight for the change we all deserve.

For too long, survivors have borne the aftermath of unthinkable acts of harassment and violence, often then to be retraumatized by the institutions and systems meant to protect them. But this behavior stems from larger, pervasive tropes and false narratives that shame and blame survivors, dismiss their allegations, and gaslight them about their experiences.

It's that gaslighting that never fails to make my blood boil. Survivors, and all of us who fight for justice on their behalf, have long been told that it’s okay that justice, accountability, and healing rarely come. We’ve been made to doubt our own stories, made to believe that we are hysterical for demanding more. It happened in 2018 when we rallied around Dr. Blasey Ford. And now look at where we are.

Enough is enough. We cannot let what happened to Dr. Blasey Ford go ignored. We deserve systems that match the seriousness of sexual violence. And systems that match the bravery of the survivors who have to endure these experiences. We have called on the Senate Judiciary Committee to examine and hold hearings—without further delay—on the handling of the investigation into Brett Kavanaugh by the FBI and the previous administration’s White House counsel. [[link removed]]

Further, we must remember that there is no deadline on justice, and an independent Special Counsel should be appointed to investigate the underlying sexual violence allegations against Associate Justice Kavanaugh. The conduct and character of a Supreme Court justice is relevant to the lives of every single person in this country.

We owe this much to the integrity of the Court.
We owe this much to our democracy.
We owe this much to Dr. Blasey Ford.
And we owe this to survivors everywhere.

They deserve more from all of us, and more than the systems we have that put power over pain, and politics over people. But as with all of our fights, I know we are capable of change. Change that has already brought on seismic shifts in the way we talk about sexual violence and the way survivors are seen. Change that has brought us new laws in the states and put this issue front and center of workplaces and campuses throughout the country. I have real hope for change.

But I’ve never relied on hope alone to get me through. It is hope plus the power we have when we come together—ready to act, ready to demand more. And that, to be sure, includes you.

In solidarity,
Fatima Goss Graves
she/her
President and CEO
National Women's Law Center

DONATE [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] [link removed] [[link removed]] [link removed] [[link removed]] [link removed] [[link removed]]
Please forward this email to your friends and co-workers and encourage them to sign up to receive NWLC emails in their own inboxes. [[link removed]]
Privacy Policy [[link removed]] | unsubscribe: [link removed]
National Women's Law Center
11 Dupont Circle NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20036
United States