Unlike the broader feminist movement, the #MeToo movement has so far managed to avoid becoming a de facto organ of the Democratic Party. That's important. Predators don't discriminate on a partisan basis, so the protectors of their victims can't afford to discriminate either.
#MeToo is still new and decentralized, but does have at least one high-profile nonprofit dedicated to advancing its cause in "Time's Up," the legal defense fund founded by powerful denizens of the entertainment industry to tackle Hollywood's sexual harassment problem.
Late last month, a coalition of five female conservative movement leaders sought to offer the group something of a course correction, hoping to steer Time's Up away from veering into an overtly partisan lane. Those women include Penny Nance, president of Concerned Women for America, Alveda King, director of Civil Rights for the Unborn and niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Kay Coles James, president of the Heritage Foundation, Jenny Beth Martin, president of Tea Party Patriots, and Cleta Mitchell, veteran Republican lawyer.
The coalition sent a letter to leaders of the Commission on Sexual Harassment and Advancing Equality in the Workplace, a working group under the banner of Time's Up, suggesting Anita Hill be removed from her post at the commission's helm to avoid alienating conservative women, according to the Los Angeles Times.
In an email to the Times, Nance contended that Hill's appointment made the commission into "a political club."
"Hill is not trusted by conservative women," Nance wrote. "Hollywood had the opportunity to own their sin and clean up their mess but instead chose to make political points. That's disappointing. They should replace Hill."
After the appointment was announced in December, Nance spoke out in a USA Today op-ed "as a former victim of an actual physical attack and attempted rape," arguing Hill's defense of Bill Clinton against the sexual assault allegations he faced during his presidency made her the wrong choice for the commission.
Pointing to a 1998 "Meet the Press" interview that discussed Kathleen Willey's accusations against Clinton, Nance wrote, "Hill had the chance to stand up for numerous women who were being sexually mistreated by a powerful man. Instead, she chose to defend that man and cast doubt on his accusers. So much for every woman deserving to be believed."
The commission confirmed it was aware of the letter in a statement emailed to the Times, but continued to defend Hill's record. "Anita Hill has made a career fighting for equitable workplace environments, and she is the best person to lead this much-needed effort," the statement said.
The feminist movement's total entanglement with Democratic politics has hampered its influence, consequently diminishing its ability to advance women's equality. As I've argued before, leaders of #MeToo should learn from their own successes, but also from the failures of the feminist movement, discerning that women accomplish more together, not separated by political disagreements that divide reasonable people who are otherwise united in seeking to advance the cause of their sex.
Whether or not the commission ultimately appeases this fair request from Nance, King, James, Martin, and Mitchell (which seems very unlikely) is probably less important than whether it at least engages them, listening to their concerns and respecting the many women from around the country whose perspective they are amplifying.
