Dear students,

I don’t know if you’ve been following the Supreme Court confirmation hearings, but Thursday and Friday were two of the most dramatic and consequential moments in U.S. political history in many, many years. Shortly after these two protesters spoke their minds to Republican Senator Jeff Flake, the senator publicly declared that the nominee Judge Kavanaugh would not have his support without an FBI investigation into charges of sexual assault. Without this statement by Sen. Flake, a potential sexual offender would have been pushed through by the majority party in Congress to serve on the highest court of the nation. Here’s what the protesters said to Sen. Flake before he began negotiating for an FBI investigation:

Victims of sexual assault confront Sen Flake

I share it with you now because we often lose faith that our voices will be heard when we speak out against injustice. This is a moment where live engagement in a public arena lead to change.

Prof. Swift