1,600 Men Fund Ad Supporting Christine Blasey Ford Ahead Of Hearing
PALO ALTO (CBS SF) – A day before Christine Blasey Ford is expected to testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, 1,600 men paid for a full-page ad in the New York Times expressing their support for the woman accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault.
"We are 1,600 men who now stand behind both Professor Anita Hill, as well as Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, because we believe them," said the ad in Wednesday's print edition of the Times.
The ad went on to say, "We believe survivors, and we call on all men of good will to stand with us to ensure that Dr. Blasey Ford's story is carefully and fully examined without bias or prejudice. It is imperative that the politics of this moment not discolor the facts. Justice demands that both Dr. Blasey Ford and her story be treated fairly, impartially, and with respect."
The men who signed their names to the ad describe themselves as "allies in the fight to end violence and harassment against women and girls," who have varying political and legal views.
"For decades, a culture of misogyny has allowed men to act with impunity and without consequence. We demand an end to that culture, and we pledge to do our part in dismantling it," the ad said.
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A group called the Phenomenal Woman Action Campaign raised funds for the Times ad. Originally seeking 1,600 men and $100,000 to pay for the ad, the campaign raised $134,000 from more than 3,000 donors as of Wednesday morning. The group said additional funds would be given to Futures Without Violence.
The ad echoes a similar full-page ad in the Times in 1991, when 1,600 African-American women put their names on an ad expressing their support for Hill, who accused then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment.
Ford, a clinical psychology professor at Palo Alto University, recently went public with allegations of sexual assault against Kavanaugh stemming from an incident in the early 1980s when they were both teenagers.
Since Ford went public with her allegations, two more women have accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct. The nominee has repeatedly denied the accusations against him.
Both Ford and Kavanaugh are expected to testify in a high-stakes hearing before the committee on Thursday.