Anita Hill speaks out on Clarence Thomas, Kerry Washington and ‘Confirmation’
Anita Hill, center, subject of the HBO film “Confirmation,” poses with Sen. Barbara Boxer of California, left, and actress Kerry Washington at the March 31 premiere of the film at Paramount Studios.
If there’s an upside to television’s recent obsession with reexamining 1990s history that transfixed a nation, it’s that marginalized participants in the events have had an opportunity to have their voices heard by an audience with 20 years of experience under their belt.
In the wake of FX’s “American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson,” Marcia Clark made the media rounds, heartened by the fact that history was finally looking upon her struggles and challenges throughout the O.J. Simpson trial with new eyes.
Similarly, Anita Hill, who testified on Capitol Hill that Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas had sexually harassed her, has been reasserting her voice, in preparation for the release of “Confirmation,” HBO’s film on the matter, starring Kerry Washington (“Scandal”) as Hill and Wendell Pierce (“The Wire”) as Thomas.
Appearing Monday on “Today,” Hill told Savannah Guthrie: “It’s important for us, I think, to relive the story and continue to learn the lessons from it.”
Hill added, “That’s why the film is important and having a younger audience — 25 years is a long time. An entire generation has grown up and has never really witnessed this event.”
It’s a switch for the professor, now at Brandeis University, who spoke out against Thomas after working for him at the Department of Education and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and whose testimony during the confirmation hearings was televised to millions.
“I’m really at peace with my role in history,” Hill said. “I don’t think I have to become at peace with him being on the Supreme Court.”
The bright spot for Hill during the creation of “Confirmation” appears to have been her interactions with Kerry Washington, who not only portrays the attorney and professor, but serves as a producer on film.
Hill met with Washington before filming began, and the actress had many questions about Hill’s mindset during her testimony.
“She just wanted to know not only how I felt but what was I thinking, and that really was encouraging to have someone wanting to know — what was my thinking pattern and what was going on in my mind during this whole episode,” Hill recounted.
“Confirmation” airs Saturday at 8:00 p.m.
Watch Anita Hill’s interview on “Today” below.
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