All The Single Ladies

It seems today that there are more single women in society than married women. Yet this wasn’t always the case. Not 20 years ago, when an unmarried woman claimed she was sexually harassed at work, she was rarely taken seriously. 

In 1991, a high-profile case showed how being unmarried made a woman untrustworthy. 

Law professor Anita Faye Hill testified before a Senate committee against her former employer, Clarence Thomas, soon to be appointed to America’s highest court, the Supreme Court.

As her boss years before, Thomas allegedly had made repeated sexual remarks to Hill, referencing lewd acts and the size of his penis. 

Hill’s status as a single woman was used against her during the hearings. 

Hill’s allegations were brushed aside by many who supported Thomas, on the basis that as an older single woman, she was obviously incapable of maintaining healthy relationships with men. They even declared that Hill suffered from erotomania – delusions that powerful men were attracted to her. 

The Senate Judiciary Committee eventually dismissed Hill’s claims and went on to appoint Thomas to the Supreme Court. As the hearings were televised, the incident became national news. And given the outcome, many American women were outraged. 

For one, the Senate committee that heard Hill’s testimony was comprised entirely of white men. At the time, only two women served in the Senate, with just a few more in the House of Representatives. 

Inspired to take action, women across America realized that something needed to change in the halls of power. Just one year after Hill’s testimony, an unusually large number of women ran for Senate seats.

Four of these candidates succeeded in winning their race to become senators – not a large number, but it was a start.