So some people have been using the term “witch hunt” pretty loosely lately and I’d like to clap back at those misguided, little dramatists in the most elegant way possible – via blogging. The two key scenarios in which I’ve heard this terminology used recently are Robert Mueller’s investigation of Donald Trump and backlash born of the #Metoo movement.
Now, being a respectable Massachusian, I, for one, feel employing the infamous Salem “witch hunt” catchphrase is wildly irresponsible and shows a flagrant misunderstanding of America’s history. Thus, here I come with my demo-feminist torch to defend Mueller and victims of sexual assault and to hang the unreasonable claims one by one, starting with the accusations of Mr. Braggadocious.
As I presume, most people by now know that Donald Trump and his advisers are currently being investigated for allegedly colluding with Russia during the 2016 Presidential Election. The special counsel investigation began on May 17th, 2017 after President Trump fired James Comey, the former FBI director, supposedly for his poor handling of the Hillary Clinton email scandal. However, much suspicion promptly arose due to the timing of Comey’s dismissal, being that President Trump did not fire him immediately when he took office in January, but only when an investigation into Russian ties with the U.S. election began.
On July 5th, 2016, James Comey discussed private information regarding the Hillary Clinton email investigation in a public FBI National Press Conference breaking traditional protocol to keep evidence surrounding people who haven’t been charged confidential. He also released additional statements associated with the email controversy in October which are believed to have had a leading influence in the election. Now, although Trump publically disavowed Comey’s handling of the affair, he still used propaganda stemming from Comey’s investigation to chant “Lock her up” in the final weeks of his campaign, gaining the favor of anti-Hillary crusaders and painting his own self-image as a superior moral candidate. Furthermore, Trump also maintained James Comey as the FBI director for his first four and a half months in the White House, which seems a least a little odd given his purported lack of confidence in Comey’s judgement.
In fact, it was only March 20th, 2017, that Comey first publically confirmed the FBI was investigating Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential Election and less than two months later on May 9th when he received word that he would no longer be able to “effectively lead the bureau.” Since the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) both already affirmed in October they were confident the Russian government participated in hacking to interfere with the U.S. election, Robert Mueller was soon assigned to take over the investigation.
Now, while the whole anecdote does appear rather convoluted, it must be noted that since Mueller took over investigating Russian ties, many suspicious dealings have since been brought to light. Noteworthy findings include Donald Trump Jr. lying about the reasons he met with an admitted Russian spy, lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya, and the indictment of Trump campaign aide Rick Gates as well as the former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort.
Furthermore, Trump himself was caught in more than one lie regarding his decision to fire Comey.
Photo illustrated by Daye Granlund of The Register Mail
While the President claimed to have sought counsel from Jeff Sessions and Rod Rosenstein before firing Comey, it appears his decision was made prior to any solicitation for advice, a fact which has been proven by the date Trump first drafted Comey’s termination letter. Trump also admitted openly that he had already decided to fire the former FBI director due to his dissatisfaction with “fake news” that he colluded with Russia during the 2016 campaign.
On March 17th, 2018, Trump reminded his followers how much he resented the special counsel investigation with an indignant tweet. He stated, “The Mueller probe should never have been started in that there was no collusion and there was no crime. It was based on fraudulent activities and a Fake Dossier paid for by Crooked Hillary and the DNC, and improperly used in FISA COURT for surveillance of my campaign. WITCH HUNT!” Well, damn. Apparently, Trump is as blameless as a child accused of devil worship and all claims that suggest otherwise are merely made up.
Yet, made up claims is exactly where Trump gets himself into trouble for using a brazen term like “witch hunt.” You see, the Salem Witch Trial accusations were, according to history, entirely made up, fabricated, and absurd. They were the result of accusations which had no logical or empirical evidence. Thus, comparing Robert Mueller to Elizabeth Hubbard in this context is not wise. Mueller is not a seventeen year old girl with an overactive, if not morbid and cruel, imagination, but a grown man with a lot of power behind him and much evidence which seems to corroborate Trump’s campaign collaborating with Russia to swing the election. It sounds to me like the claims against Trump which are supposedly made up are actually rather well-substantiated. One might even say that there is a witch in the White House. He’s just orange instead of green.
Which brings me to my next point: do people not get that the Salem Witch Trials wasn’t just about false accusations, but about falsely accusing people of being something that wasn’t even real? Okay, witches, like modern people who practice Wicca are real, but they basically worship Mother Earth and recite poems as prayers. TV and cinema-movie witches like the Wicked Witch of the West though? Those are made up. They’ve never been anything more than a religious superstition stemming from an irrational fear of paganism. Corrupt political leaders though, are not superstitions. And neither are sexual predators.
Photo illustrated by Phil Hands
Now, although I find it sickening that I can effortlessly transition from Donald Trump to the sexual deviants running rampant in Hollywood and the political sphere, the man’s unfortunately made it very easy. Donald Trump, along with Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, James Franco, Louis C.K., Senator Al Franken, George Bush, and many others have been accused of sexual assault. In the dawn of a new era for women and sexual assault survivors, the surfacing of such stories in the social arena is part of a larger crusade meant to empower and unite victims: the #MeToo movement.
Originally, after actress Alyssa Milano rallied all sexual assault victims to show solidarity by hashtagging #MeToo on social media, there was a surge of women (and even men) who posted about their personal experiences. Milano, along with others who came forward and spoke out against their assailants, commiserated with other victims and raised balled fists of rebellion in the hopes of gutting rape culture and improving sexual assault awareness.
However, soon after the cause gained traction, a few big names came out criticizing the #MeToo movement, suggesting that it had gone beyond its initial goal and had become a “witch hunt.” Among these people are Liam Neeson, French actress Catherine Deneuve, director Michael Haneke, and even Woody Allen and Ben Affleck (both themselves accused of sexual assault). Collectively, these celebrities and the rest of the #MeToo haters seem to think there have been just too many allegations in recent news for them to all hold water. They believe some women are merely lying about sexual assault to get five minutes of fame and stir up the media. But do they know the names of James Franco’s accusers? What about Al Franken’s? Would they recognize their faces in a crowd? I’m guessing that’s three no’s for the majority. That’s because these women aren’t famous. Oh, and even more importantly, false accusations are very rare and likely to never see a court room or result in criminal retribution.
It’s unfair to call the #MeToo movement a “witch hunt” because it implies all sexual assault allegations are untrue. Not some, not a couple, not one, but all. Because all the Salem Witch Trial allegations were false and used to manipulate social standing in 17th century New England. Furthermore, the Witch Trials are primarily known for demonizing innocent women over men. Women were put to death far more often than their male counterparts not only in Puritan Massachusetts, but in Europe as well, so the plethora of men shouting “witch hunt!” is actually quite ironic. Doubters cannot simply rewrite history to create a convenient metaphor. The mass hysteria thing has already been done.
Besides, multiple men accused and convicted of sexual assault over the past several years are already facing their comeuppance including Brock Turner, Larry Nassar and most recently Bill Cosby. Growing up near Salem I spent an abnormal amount of time studying the infamous Witch Trials, including visiting the Witch Museum two or three times, so I’m pretty well versed in Witch Trial trivia. I would testify on penalty of death that none of these men meet the criteria for being a witch: walking on their hands, third nipples, or an inability to read out loud. But they are guilty. That I know. And in the real Witch Trials, the falsely accused faced a sentence much worse than a tarnished reputation. Suffice it to say that as long as there are only superficial ties connecting current events to the gruesome mass execution of innocent men, women, and children, perhaps people should be more responsible with figurative language.