Anita Hill

We could not be more grateful for Professor Anita Hill's words and time. Thank you to everyone who came out to listen and thank you to everyone who helped make this event happen.

“It is on us,” Hill declared. “Collecting the data, understanding the true status of women and girls in this country is an imperative as far as I’m concerned. If we are in fact going to move forward, we have to measure where we are right now. If we are going to measure any progress, we have to have a baseline, and we have to collect data to be able to do that.”

About Anita Hill

The youngest of 13 children from a farm in Oklahoma, Hill received her J.D. from Yale Law School in 1980. She began her career in private practice in Washington, D.C. There she also worked at the U.S. Education Department and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. With more than 30 years of teaching law to graduate and undergraduate students, she is currently at Brandeis University where she teaches courses on gender, race, social policy and legal history. Ms. Hill has spoken to hundreds of business, professional, academic and civic organizations in the United States and abroad about how to make campuses and workplaces more fair and equitable places for the people who inhabit them.

In 1991, Anita Hill was thrust into the public spotlight when she testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee during the confirmation hearing for U.S. Supreme Court nominee, Judge Clarence Thomas. After the hearings Ms. Hill began speaking to audiences worldwide about how to build on the great strides of the women's and civil rights struggles. She presents concrete proposals which encourage us to extend our vision of equality to include more than legal rights. Her goal is to encourage creative, equitable and positive resolution of race, gender and class issues. She also advises on class action workplace discrimination cases.

In 1995, Ms. Hill wrote her biography, "Speaking Truth to Power". In 2011, Hill wrote "Reimagining Equality: Stories of Gender, Race and Finding Home", which takes the reader inside the subprime meltdown and the resulting devastation to families and communities. This book exposes its deep roots in race and gender inequities which imperil every American's ability to achieve the American Dream. She has also written commentary for Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, and Ms. Magazine, and appears regularly on national television programs including Good Morning America, The Daily Show, Meet the Press, The Today Show, The Tavis Smiley Show and Larry King Live. In 2014, the documentary "Anita: Speaking Truth to Power" was released. It depicts how Ms. Hill has become an American icon who empowers men and women around the world to stand up for peace and justice.

Despite a demanding speaking schedule, Hill continues her teaching and research. She believes that the combination of popular and scholarly work keeps her ideas fresh and grounded in both the latest research and in real life experiences. Professor Hill is also the recipient of numerous awards, grants and honorary degrees, including the Ford Hall Forum's First Amendment Award for her promotion of gender and race equality. The Fletcher Fellowship award was given to Ms. Hill for her work on ending educational disparities among poor and minority students. The Fletcher award was created in 2004 on the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education and is given to institutions and individuals working to fulfill the goals of that landmark decision. Her professional and civic contributions include the National Women's Law Center and the Boston Area Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights where she sits on Board of Directors for both organizations. Along with Provost Steve A.N. Goldstein, Hill is responsible for implementing "Fulfilling the Promise: The Brandeis University Strategic Plan".

About the Sherman J. Bellwood Lectures

The Sherman J. Bellwood Lectures bring prominent and highly regarded local, regional and national leaders to the state of Idaho and the University of Idaho campus. Students have the opportunity to discuss, examine and debate a wide-range of subjects related to the justice system.

Throughout his distinguished career, Judge Sherman J. Bellwood was committed to the legal profession and to legal education. In one of his last and most generous contributions to legal education, Judge Bellwood endowed the Sherman J. Bellwood Lectures at the College of Law. According to the terms of his will, Judge Bellwood's purpose in establishing this endowment was "to enable the College of Law to invite and present persons learned in the law to lecture on legal subjects from time to time." This endowment is the largest endowed lectureship at the University of Idaho.

Learn more about Sherman J. Bellwood