On Saturday, October 6th, the Senate confirmed Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the United States Supreme Court after weeks of fiercely partisan political debate. Prior to his confirmation, questions arose on whether the allegation that Judge Kavanaugh sexually assaulted Dr. Christine Blasey Ford should impact his nomination to the nation’s highest court.
On Thursday, September 27th, Dr. Ford’s testimony and Judge Kavanaugh’s hearing were shown live in the Student Commons. The room was filled, but the normal buzz of the Commons was absent. Everyone remained quiet in order to hear the testimony and show respect for the seriousness of the issues being discussed.
“It comes across as if our government is allowing sexual assault and that a women’s sexual assault story is not valued,” said Sarina Chitkara (IV). And many members of the community agreed, not only disappointed by Kavanaugh’s confirmation, but also fearful it exemplifies the idea that sexual assault is acceptable.
Teachers used the opportunity to relate the hearings to their class curriculum. Ms. Drohan lead discussions in her Humanities class about how the confirmation hearings related to The Scarlet Letter in terms of masculinity and shaming women.
Dr. Voldoire incorporated the hearings into both her Form III and Current Events class by bringing her students to watch the testimony and explaining to them how the Supreme Court works and what was at stake. With her current events classes, she also discussed different forms of activism such as journalism and voting.
“The government seems to care more about their political parties and personal gains of power (like getting reelected), over the allegations of Dr. Ford and the other women,” Daniel Silverstein (IV) said.
And many teachers shared the concern about the state of our political system.
“I believe the confirmation process is effectively broken and will remain so until there is a decisive change in the broader political environment, which is nearing breakdown as well,” said Dr. Cullen.
Kavanaugh’s confirmation leaves us wondering how this will affect our country moving forward. But we must also figure out how to best support and encourage the community within Fieldston.
