Ahead of Saturday’s confirmation vote, Brett Kavanaugh accuser Deborah Ramirez shredded U.S. Senators for turning a blind on a sexual assault.
In a statement through her lawyers, Ramirez said, “Thirty-five years ago, the other students in the room chose to laugh and look the other way as sexual violence was perpetrated on me by Brett Kavanaugh.”
She added: “As I watch many of the Senators speak and vote on the floor of the Senate I feel like I’m right back at Yale where half the room is laughing and looking the other way.”
The statement from Ramirez:
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Thirty-five years ago, the other students in the room chose to laugh and look the other way as sexual violence was perpetrated on me by Brett Kavanaugh. As I watch many of the Senators speak and vote on the floor of the Senate I feel like I’m right back at Yale where half the room is laughing and looking the other way. Only this time, instead of drunk college kids, it is US Senators who are deliberately ignoring his behavior. This is how victims are isolated and silenced.
But I do have corroborating witnesses speaking for me, although they were not allowed to speak to the FBI, and I feel extremely grateful for them and for the overwhelming amount of support that I have received and continue to receive during this extremely difficult and painful time. There may be people with power who are looking the other way, but there are millions more who are standing together, speaking up about personal experiences of sexual violence and taking action to support survivors. This is truly a collective moment of survivors and allies standing together.
Thank you for hearing me, seeing me and believing me. I am grateful for each and every one of you. We will not be silenced.
Republicans should be ashamed of themselves
As I wrote last month, the Brett Kavanaugh process should have been a cakewalk for Republicans.
In the midst of a midterm election year when female voters are fleeing the party, they had the opportunity to stand up for women after multiple survivors came forward to share their painful stories.
Instead, Republicans proved themselves to be no different than the drunk college students at Yale who stood idly by as Deborah Ramirez was sexually assaulted by a man who would go on to be a United States Supreme Court justice.
Republicans should be ashamed of themselves and voters should fight back in November.
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Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
