Anita

This is a 95-minute documentary directed by Freida Lee Mock. It tells the story of Anita Hill's testimony at the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings in 1991 and the impact of those hearings on Anita Hill in subsequent years. She had testified for multiple days about the sexual harassment she experienced from Thomas while he was her boss.

The film includes much archival footage from the hearings and elsewhere and commentary by journalists Jill Abramson and Jane Mayer, attorney John Carr, and Harvard law professor Charles Ogletree.

In one sense, this was an embarrassing film to view, watching an all-male Senate committee attacking Anita Hill's credibility and quietly listening to Clarence Thomas forcefully state that he was being lynched (by a black woman no less). The committee declined to hear witnesses that would have corroborated Hill's testimony and the fact that she had complained about Thomas's behavior at the time it happened.

Obviously, the documentary is from Anita Hill's perspective, but one cannot watch it without believing she was telling the truth.

I watched this documentary about Anita Hill's 1991 testimony before the state judiciary committee against her former boss, U.S. Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas, for his repeated sexual harassment to refresh my memory and learn more about circumstances surrounding the events.

It was interesting to learn about Hill's life, see who was supporting her, (her wonderful family, Professor Charles Ogletree, Harvard Law School, and others), and wrenching to rewatch what are to me excruciating details of this terrible, sexist, judgmental, power-system that masquerades as justice.

As I the watched the self-righteous men click their pens and grill Anita, I heard Tom Wolfe's words echo in my head, "They have a way of making the vicim look like the criminal and the criminal the victim." They of course did that quick flip and turned valid charges of sexual harassment into claims of racial harassment against Clarence Thomas.

Joe Biden is responsible for not having called the witnesses who could have corroborated Anita Hill; that's not something I can or want to forget.

Like many women, I've experienced gender based violence and sexual harassment, which is just part of the problem of gender inequality. I've also been a witness in two trials, neither was a picnic, and in both I was attacked for speaking the truth. In one trial, the criminal was put away; in the other, the corruption prevailed and the criminal went on to hurt other women and is still free today. In my experience, American courts and the U.S. government are unflinchingly corrupt.

Near the end of the film, Anita says, "Despite the high cost that is involved, it is worth having the truth emerge." I agree with her, but what a struggle it is. Why don't people come forward more readily? Because they are blamed and skewered when they do.

I believe Anita Hill. Never a question about it. She told her friends and colleagues at the time and well... she's telling the truth.

It saddened me, but I'm glad I watched the movie.

I remember Anita Hill's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1991. (I almost wrote Hill's "trial" because that's what it felt like.) During it, she was asked questions by Senators, led by Joe Biden, that made her repeat and describe, again and again, Clarence Thomas's vulgar and grotesque treatment of her when she worked with him-- or, more to the point, worked for him. It's much harder to issue a complaint about a boss than a colleague. During the testimony, one of my sisters phoned me and said, "I feel like I'm being sexually abused, exposed to this." She was right. The Senate put the whole country through an ordeal that was vile and, as it turned out, ignored: they confirmed Clarence Thomas anyway.

Hill's impact was not ignored by the media, though, or the nation.

This is a completely conventional documentary. I hesitate to offer a single criticism of it because Anita Hill is the subject, and she-- like so many civil rights activists before her-- is an inspiration throughout. Her calmness, her unflinching determination, and her intelligence shine through every stage of her story.

The film interviews a variety of people, all of whom shed light on the way race and gender issues are mishandled in Washington, where all that seems to matter, in the end, is power.

Anita Hill shares her story about the sexual harassment she suffered from her former boss Clarence Thomas to the US Senators in this documentary. Throughout the whole proceedings, it appeared that the senators had been intimidating Mrs. Hill to repeatedly recount the disgusting details in an effort to humiliate and demoralize her, but she remained calm, patient, and determined to express her point. Her claims was not taken seriously, yet even so, I was delighted to know she had a positive influence on others. She might not have believed that voicing the truth would benefit her much, but in reality, it impacted a lot of others who were or are hesitant to speak out against their boss for fear of losing their jobs, having their reputations tarnished or receiving threats.

Unfortunately, this movie tells only one side of the story so it really does not do justice to Anita Hill. I too, watched the proceedings and this movie does not tell it like it really happened. If you want to see a movie that degrades the senate and makes a monster out of Clarence Thomas without even an attempt at fairness or equality, then this is the movie for you. It is so biased that it was only believable by someone who was already convinced of Thomas' guilt. It was so biased that it came across as a work of fiction. As such, it is less than useless for telling the facts.

Its a shame really, this story needs to be told properly. I can only imagine the courage it must have taken to stand before the senate and testify about this kind of thing. As my dad used to say "if you want it screwed up, give it to the government... or Hollywood"