Recent controversy over the Jeffrey Epstein files triggered the need to recount the many dots that, when connected, disclose a very clear picture of societal misogyny evocative of Atwood’s “Handmaid’s Tale.”
Let’s start with the constitution which explicitly did not and still does NOT give women equal protection. We are still waiting for the Equal Rights Amendment even though it has been ratified by 38 states. It was 1920—my mother’s lifetime–when women gained the right to vote. This year, Republicans attempted to restrict that right with the SAVE Act, a voting bill whose proof of citizenship requirements would have disproportionately disenfranchised women. The right of women in the US to independently and equitably access credit didn’t occur until 1974 with passage of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.
Fast forward. Laws that control women’s reproductive capacity are multiplying, encouraged by the Dobbs decision. Efforts to “encourage” women to bear more children are multiplying. Congress routinely resists effort to renew the Violence Against Women Act. Two men accused of sexual misconduct sit on the US Supreme Court along with a woman who belongs to a patriarchal Catholic sect. Someone accused of domestic violence heads the Department of Defense.
The president personally fuels the misogyny. Twenty-nine women have accused him of sexual misconduct. Courts validated two claims with conviction for 34 fraud felonies (Stormy Daniels) and civil penalties for sexual assault (E Jean Carroll). His anti-DEI efforts affect women, among other groups.
Connect the dots. Open the Epstein files. Hold exposed pedophiles and enablers accountable, including the president, and others in positions of power. Let’s get serious about real pedophiles and sex-trafficking, not just about pizza parlor conspiracies or vigilante operations such as Operation Underground Railroad. While at it, let’s address the bigger picture of systemic misogyny. Women and children matter.
Dr. Ellen Brady is a retired physician with a public health degree. She spent most of her career in the pharmaceutical industry. She currently serves as the Issues Director for the Utah Women’s Democratic Club.
