Shameful Use of Victims for Political Advantage

The recent media circus surrounding Judge Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court highlights two very concerning issues. The first issue involves politicians' use of people's pain for political advantage, and the second involves protecting the Constitutional right to the presumption of innocence.

It is no secret that most politicians will use whatever is politically expedient to get elected, but their use of other people's pain as a point of rhetorical strategy bothers me greatly. During the last election cycle, Michigan politicians used the Flint water crisis to strengthen their image. I heard rhetorical blather such as, "I acted quickly and decisively, and she didn't," or worse yet personal attacks like, "This candidate doesn't care about poisonous water killing our children." Now, the politicians are at it again. This time the victims of Larry Nassar's sexual abuse are being used as pawns in the nasty scramble for political position. Bill Schuette shamelessly parades his prosecution of Nassar as evidence of his nobility--as if that wasn't actually the job he was paid to do. Yet, he conveniently ignores the fact that for years the state and its agents (including Schutte) completely ignored the victims who complained of Nassar's abuse. Lest we forget, Michigan State is a state-funded university, and as an agent of the state, that makes Schutte a part of the problem, not a part of the solution.

Now, in a desperate attempt to stop the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court, politicians on one side of the aisle paraded Dr. Blasey-Ford in a shameful circus of political maneuvering. Rather than caring about Ford, the politicians simply used her to their advantage, even stirring up the raw pain of the millions of #MeToo women to leverage public support. Lest I sound unfair, the other side of the aisle was no better. Allegations of sexual assault are serious, and claims ought to be taken seriously if they are reasonably credible. A short delay for a proper investigation should not have had to be forced by the party's own side.

Connected to the political use of people's pain is the deeply concerning erosion of the Constitutional guarantee of due process. It used to be that people were innocent until proven guilty. But our country's shameful history of ignoring sexual assault, sexual harassment, and abuse claims has led to a climate where an accusation is enough to convict someone. Even when accused abusers are found to be innocent, their lives are often ruined and a cloud of suspicion hovers over them for the rest of their lives. With deep insight into human nature, this country's founders ensured the Constitution protected citizens from arbitrary punishment without first being found guilty of a charge. But the founders couldn't have anticipated how cruel the media (and social media) could be, leading those falsely accused to lose their reputation and security.

If politicians really care about the pain crime victims experience, they would not use that pain for political advantage. Rather, they would protect victims' rights and privacy and empower victims to participate in the criminal justice process. They would also ensure that victims are not replaced by the government as the offended party. Furthermore, if politicians care about victims, they would preserve the Constitutional guarantee of equal protection, including for those accused of crimes who have not been proven guilty.