by Mary Margaret Olohan
TIME Magazine named Christine Blasey Ford one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
TIME revealed Wednesday that Ford, who accused Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault, is featured in TIME’s annual list.
“Her story, spoken while holding back tears, shook Washington and the country. Her courage, in the face of those who wished to silence her, galvanized Americans. And her unfathomable sacrifice, out of a sense of civic duty, shined a spotlight on the way we treat survivors of sexual violence,” California Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris wrote in a guest contribution for TIME.
“Christine Blasey Ford’s ambition wasn’t to become a household name or make it onto this list,” Harris added. “She had a good life and a successful career — and risked everything to send a warning in a moment of grave consequence.”
Harris was outspoken in Ford‘s support during the September 2018 Kavanaugh hearings investigating Ford’s accusations.
“At her core, she is a teacher,” the 2020 presidential candidate wrote. “And through her courage, she forced the country to reckon with an issue that has too often been ignored and kept in the dark.”
Many other notable figures are included in TIME’s list, including Kavanaugh, President Donald Trump, professional golfer Tiger Woods and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
“[W]hen unhinged partisanship and special interests sought to distract the Senate from considering those qualifications, we saw other facets of Justice Kavanaugh’s character shine forth as well,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wrote of Kavanaugh in TIME.
“The country saw his resilience and commitment to public service,” McConnell continued. “We saw his loyal devotion to family and friends. We saw his undeterred reverence for the law, for precedents and for our nation’s highest traditions. It is all these qualities combined that make Justice Kavanaugh exactly the kind of jurist whom the American people deserve on our Supreme Court. I look forward to many years of brilliant, distinguished public service.”
TIME’s 2019 100 most influential people issue features six different covers highlighting six of the 100: Pelosi, singer Taylor Swift, actor Dwayne Johnson, actress Sandra Oh, TV star Gayle King and Egyptian soccer player Mohamed Salah.
“We all have teachers, some we know intimately, others who inspire from the page or the screen,” TIME Editor-in-Chief Edward Felsenthal wrote in a Wednesday TIME piece describing how TIME selected the 100. “This holds true even for the most accomplished people on earth. Our annual TIME 100 issue is filled with tributes from teachers to students; in many cases, the surprise is who is playing which role today.”
“In many ways, these connections — forged across and among industries — are the heart of the TIME 100, which now, in its 16th year, is far more than a list,” Felsenthal added. “It is a community of hundreds of global leaders, many of whom support and challenge one another. And at a time when so many of our problems require cross-disciplinary solutions, they are also uniquely positioned to effect change.”
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Mary Margaret Olohan is a reporter for the Daily Caller News Foundation. Follow Mary on Twitter.
THIS is the type of thing that has made the list mean very little. It also makes Time much less than it used to be.