UE Northeast Region President Elizabeth Jesdale issued the following statement on the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings today on the Northeast Region Facebook Page [1]

Believe Dr. Christine Blasey Ford. Oppose Kavanaugh's confirmation.

The Kavanaugh hearings today are yet another poignant reminder to all working people that it is our responsibility to create safe and empowering environment for women, girls, and gender non-conforming people in our lives, in our workplaces, and in our unions.

As working people we are all, regardless of our gender, constantly fighting an uphill battle against the stresses of day-to-day life and its myriad economic and social pressures. We are all fighting to have respect and dignity in our workplaces and in our lives.

Women and gender non-conforming people do so under the additional pressure of the threat of sexual violence and assaults being potentially around any corner. Being constantly vigilant is exhausting and takes away from our ability to fully participate in our places of work, our organizations, and our lives. We are constantly trying to find our way in a culture that tries to excuse sexual assault as "boys being boys," and an environment of laws that does not respect our bodily autonomy. Dr. Christine Blasey Ford bravely told of a series of events many of us know all too well. The uneven power dynamic, the humiliation, the fear, the impact on how we make decisions on where and who to spend time with are felt going forward into the rest of our lives. The impact is real, palpable, and creates a world where the benefit of what we truly have to offer is severely curtailed. And this benefits no one.

If Kavanaugh is appointed to the Supreme Court, it will have a devastating effect on women's, girls' and gender non-conforming people's safety and ability to live fulfilling joyful lives.

We are not surprised that Kavanaugh is also fervently anti-union. Just months ago, he took pains to write a dissent defending a company that had been found clearly guilty of creating a new, spinoff company to bust the workers' union. In addition to being a crushing blow to women, girls, and gender non-conforming people, Kavanaugh’s appointment would push the Supreme Court that is already anti-worker in an even more pro-corporate direction.

Believe Dr. Christine Blasey Ford. Oppose Kavanaugh's confirmation.