PULLMAN – Lawyer, scholar, and civil rights activist Anita Hill will headline WSU’s Annual Women’s Recognition Luncheon. The luncheon will take place at 11 a.m. Wednesday, March 11, in WSU’s Compton Union Building Ballroom.
Hill was thrust into the public spotlight in 1991 when she testified about sexual harassment before the Senate Judiciary Committee during Clarence Thomas’ confirmation hearing. In the years since the hearing, she has been speaking to audiences around the United States and world.
At WSU, Hill will speak to the audience about encouraging creative, equitable and positive resolution of race, gender and class issues.
“Professor Anita Hill is a woman who dared,” said Turea Erwin, director of WSU’s Women’s Resource Center. “She has encouraged women to speak out against inequities in the workplace, and people are very excited about her visit to WSU.”
Prior to the Clarence Thomas hearing, Hill was a law professor. She had worked for Thomas at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. She is currently a faculty member at the Heller Graduate School at Brandeis University in Waltham, MA and a visiting professor at Wellesley College.
In 1995 Hill wrote her autobiography, “Speaking Truth to Power.” She has also written commentary for Time, Inc., Newsweek, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Ms. Magazine and regularly appears on national television programs.
Hill, the youngest of 13 children, grew up on a farm in rural Oklahoma. She received her J.D. from Yale Law School in 1980 and began her career in private practice in Washington, D.C. She later became the first African American to become tenured at the University of Oklahoma’s College of Law.
This year marks the 12th year anniversary for the Women’s Recognition Luncheon where WSU women are recognized for their achievements in leadership, research and service.
Erwin said tickets for the annual Women’s Recognition Luncheon typically sellout quickly. Only general admission tickets will be available for $25 each beginning Feb. 2. They can be purchased at WSU’s Women’s Resource Center, Wilson Hall, Room 8. More information can be obtained by contacting Kim Barrett at 509-335-4386.
