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Living letters
Prof. Anita Hill's (HELLER) historic testimony inspired 25,000 letters
by Rebecca Klein
Editorial assistant
Features | 11/25/08
Posted online at 11:39 PM EST on 11/24/08
/ Last updated at 12:25 AM EST on 11/24/08
"At some point, even though I had not made the time to begin to read them, I realized that [the letters are] personal correspondence, and I felt that I had an obligation to read them if I could," she said.
"One of the things I think sort of pushed me into gear was that about a year ago, someone was talking and said, 'You know, it's been 16 years since the hearing,' and I thought, 'Wow, that's a long time to have this mail.'"
Among the 25,000 letters, Hill found a mixture of ardent support and disdain for her controversial role in the Senate hearings.
"Part of what the sorting [system] did was to sort out the positive from the negative," she said. "The overwhelming majority [of letters] were positive, but there were a significant number of letters that were negative as well."
Yet Hill found even negative opinions intriguing.
"Even [from] the negative [letters], you can even learn something," she said. "You can't completely discount it because maybe they're not flattering or put you in the best light."
Hill explained that there wasn't just one type of person who wrote to her. She said she received letters from people of both sexes, various ages and a range of ethnic backgrounds.
Hill's accusations against Thomas prompted a wide range of responses. While some people were interested in the political implications of Hill's testimony, others identified personally with her decision.
"Some people relate to [these incidents] on a political basis; some people relate to them on a personal basis. They provoke different kinds of behavior and different kinds of reactions," she said.
"A lot of people [who wrote to me] were angry, a lot of people found humor in the scene that they saw, and in a lot of people it created a better understanding of something that they had gone through."
For Hill, it was interesting to see how people came to conclusions about "whose side to take" in the hearings against Thomas.
"One of the things I think sort of pushed me into gear was that about a year ago, someone was talking and said, 'You know, it's been 16 years since the hearing,' and I thought, 'Wow, that's a long time to have this mail.'"
Among the 25,000 letters, Hill found a mixture of ardent support and disdain for her controversial role in the Senate hearings.
"Part of what the sorting [system] did was to sort out the positive from the negative," she said. "The overwhelming majority [of letters] were positive, but there were a significant number of letters that were negative as well."
Yet Hill found even negative opinions intriguing.
"Even [from] the negative [letters], you can even learn something," she said. "You can't completely discount it because maybe they're not flattering or put you in the best light."
Hill explained that there wasn't just one type of person who wrote to her. She said she received letters from people of both sexes, various ages and a range of ethnic backgrounds.
Hill's accusations against Thomas prompted a wide range of responses. While some people were interested in the political implications of Hill's testimony, others identified personally with her decision.
"Some people relate to [these incidents] on a political basis; some people relate to them on a personal basis. They provoke different kinds of behavior and different kinds of reactions," she said.
"A lot of people [who wrote to me] were angry, a lot of people found humor in the scene that they saw, and in a lot of people it created a better understanding of something that they had gone through."
For Hill, it was interesting to see how people came to conclusions about "whose side to take" in the hearings against Thomas.
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