Photo credits: NBC News
Author’s note:
With the close of the 2024 US Presidential election, tensions across the nation have risen intensely, with Democrats and Republicans even escalating to violence or harassment in many cases. The election was not as close as it was initially predicted to be: Donald Trump won by a significant margin. This has led to questions over how, despite being convicted of felonies, being impeached in his previous term, and having been accused of sexual assault on numerous occasions, he easily took home the win for the Republican party. Critics of Trump took to social media and the streets to express disapproval over the election of a convicted felon and alleged sexual assaulter as president, while some radical Trump supports have celebrated this disappointment, with one supporter even writing “Your body, my choice” as a reference to Trump’s opposition to abortion. Ultimately, it is necessary to examine a presidential candidate’s legal history to make a truly informed decision in future elections, thus I will explain the sexual assault allegations against Trump.
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“When we entered the room he grabbed each of us tightly in a hug and kissed each of us on the lips without asking for permission.”
“He would step in front of each girl and look you over from head to toe like we were just meat, we were just sexual objects, that we were not people.”
“I turned around, and within seconds he was pushing me against the wall and forcing his tongue down my throat.”
Spoken by Jessica Drake, Samantha Holvey, and Natasha Stoynoff, respectively, who all accused him of sexual assault, the words made him feel frightened, but perhaps not as frightened as one may have expected him to be. These allegations were not the first, and he could foresee that they would not be the last. Regardless, he felt assured in his power and wealth. Nothing would change for the worse, and that thought was comforting to him, yet terrifying for the women he hurt.
Recently elected the next president of the United States, Donald Trump has a long history of sexual assault allegations. The earliest accusations date back to the 1970s, and since then, he has been found liable in court for sexual abuse. Many women have stated that Trump reached under their skirts, kissed them without proper consent, and walked in on them in changing rooms, among other actions. According to Business Insider, over twenty women have accused him of sexual misconduct as of 2023.
An early case occurred in the 1970s to a woman named Jessica Leeds. She explained that when she was a traveling businesswoman for a paper company, she sat beside Trump in first class on a flight to New York. Leeds reported that although they had never met before, around forty-five minutes into the flight, Trump lifted the armrest and began to touch her nonconsensually and that his “hands were everywhere.”
A similar situation took place in Manhattan to 22-year-old receptionist Rachel Crooks. She worked at Bayrock Group, a real estate investment and development company located in Trump Tower. She encountered Trump near an elevator in 2005 and introduced herself, knowing the company she worked for did business with him. They shook hands, but Trump reportedly did not let go. Instead, without asking for her consent, he began kissing her cheeks and then “kissed [Crooks] directly on the mouth.”
Such violations were not done to just strangers, however. Jill Harth, who had worked with Trump in the 1990s, stated that in 1993, Trump tried to kiss her, pushed her against a wall, and put his hand up her dress. This led to her filing a complaint for “attempted rape,” though she dropped the suit as part of a settlement with him.
These three instances are not fully representative of all of the accusations that Trump has faced, but they highlight a common pattern of his inappropriate and violating actions against numerous women—both strangers and acquaintances. Despite the sheer amount of women who have stepped forward, Trump has won the presidency once again.
Of course, one’s fit for the presidency is based on numerous factors, including political knowledge, diplomacy, and countless other skills. However, over twenty sexual assault accusations should, logically, undermine even the most politically skilled candidates, as morality and trustworthiness are undeniably essential in a leader.
His election has created fear among women as they consider the lack of punishment he has received for allegedly sexually assaulting numerous women, and the rise of derogatory comments such as “Your body, my choice” that surfaced soon after the polls closed.
At this point, the election has concluded. However, I contend that voters must make a greater attempt to educate themselves on the candidates’ lives and controversies before casting a ballot, as someone leading an entire nation should not be one who has repeatedly violated the comfort and safety of women, a group that makes up half the population.
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Jurisview Journal is a student-led blog that publishes biweekly articles about interesting criminal cases. Our aim is to shed light on cases that require justice or further exploration and provide input on controversial legal events. We also publish infographics to help victims or those who wish to educate themselves on legal issues.
Works Cited
Barbaro, Michael. “Two Women Say Donald Trump Touched Them Inappropriately (Published 2016).” The New York Times, 12 October 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/13/us/politics/donald-trump-women.html. Accessed 30 November 2024.
Padilla, Mariel. “The history of Donald Trump's sexual assault allegations.” The 19th News, 26 October 2023, https://19thnews.org/2023/10/donald-trump-associates-sexual-misconduct-allegations/. Accessed 30 November 2024.
Relman, Eliza, and Azmi Haroun. “The 26 women who have accused Trump of sexual misconduct.” Business Insider, 10 May 2023, https://www.businessinsider.com/women-accused-trump-sexual-misconduct-list-2017-12. Accessed 30 November 2024.
“Sexual misconduct allegations against Donald Trump – a timeline.” The Guardian, 25 October 2024, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/25/trump-sexual-misconduct-allegations-timeline. Accessed 30 November 2024.
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