(Photo by MELINA MARA/AFP/Getty Images)
The names of everyone involved in this story aren’t necessarily important. It involves prestigious clerkships and powerful D.C. firms. Nor does it even matter if you believe Justice Kavanaugh tried to sexually assault Christine Blasey Ford. The conversation that one former clerk describes could unfortunately happen at any number of gatherings where powerful lawyers chum around.
To set the stage, a well-known female attorney who spoke publicly in defense of Kavanaugh throughout his confirmation process was reportedly confronted at a party by a young lawyer and sexual assault survivor about the damage it causes when prominent women lend their voices to support men accused of assault. Specifically, as in this case, when the defense went beyond generic platitudes and included counseling a cautious senator to not believe Dr. Blasey Ford’s testimony. And then this quote…
she brought up his hiring of female clerks as some kind of defense, and said verbatim “I don’t care if he raped five women, as long as he promoted one.” Which was quite the choice of rhetorical flourish!
If people are still confused about what rape culture is, this is a pretty textbook definition.
Because there was a — still problematic, but at least marginally defensible — response that boiled down to “I listened to all the evidence and while her testimony was powerful, it just didn’t persuade me.” But instead, she thought a better answer was “I don’t care if he raped five women, as long as he promoted one.” When powerful people in the profession promote a culture that assault is not only to be dismissed but downplayed it sends a message to every predator in the circle that they have no need to worry as long as they keep their professional resume clean and tells every victim that they will not only not be believed, but will be openly mocked for coming forward.
That’s also an insulting exchange rate. And I’m not being entirely glib. Sexual assault is not transactional like that, but if someone were to make such a disgusting suggestion, the idea that serial rapists are off the hook if they toss out one promotion is basically underlining how little respect you have for victims.
There are other outlets naming everyone involved. We’re not going to, not because we don’t think it’s important but because we don’t want to give the people who routinely contribute to this culture every day a scapegoat to exorcise them of their sins. Most folks aren’t making statements as egregious as this, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t disempowering victims by subtly adding to the already hostile environment in the legal profession.
Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.