Pure Class: Clinton Accuser Refuses GoFundMe Cash
Tell me if this sounds familiar:
A woman has come forward with a damning, decades-old sexual assault allegation against a prominent political figure, and GoFundMe accounts are set up to help fund her cause.
Actually, I’m not talking about Christine Blasey Ford and her claims that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her over 35 years ago.
I’m talking about Juanita Broaddrick, who, in 1999, went on national television and publicly accused former President Bill Clinton of raping her in 1978 while he was attorney general of Arkansas.
I don’t blame you for thinking I was talking about Ford. The two stories have some similarities.
There are several big differences between the two cases, however. For one thing, Broaddrick recounted where exactly she said the assault took place. For another, she apparently spoke to other people at the time about it. NBC spoke to four women for its 1999 report who said Broaddrick had told them about the incident shortly after it happened.
Now, there’s one more huge difference at hand. Broaddrick wants nothing to do with accepting GoFundMe money.
In a Twitter post on Sunday, Broaddrick said that a GoFundMe page had been started on her behalf. Her response to that effort was the epitome of class.
Well meaning people set up a gofundme account for me. It has now been discontinued at my request. I won’t take money for what I am doing. DO NOT GIVE TO ANY GOFUNDME ACCOUNT FOR ME. THANKS
— Juanita Broaddrick (@atensnut) October 1, 2018
“Well meaning people set up a gofundme account for me,” Broaddrick wrote. “It has now been discontinued at my request. I won’t take money for what I am doing.”
Just in case there was any doubt, Broaddrick emphasized her point in all caps.
“DO NOT GIVE TO ANY GOFUNDME ACCOUNT FOR ME. THANKS,” she said.
This is in stark contrast to Ford, whose various GoFundMe pages raised over $700,000. The response from Ford’s team couldn’t have been more different than Broaddrick’s.
“Thank you for your support,” Team Blasey Ford said in a message one now-closed GoFundMe page, which alone raised more than a half-million dollars. “Please continue to support great causes that help women and others speak out and stay strong!”
Now, in fairness, there is no way to know how much of a hand Ford had in the “Team Blasey Ford” statement. But where’s Ford messaging denouncing the funds? Where’s Ford’s message that money isn’t the reason she’s pursuing these sexual assault claims against Kavanaugh?
Just to be clear, Ford deserves her chance to be heard. To flippantly dismiss her claims would be a disservice to all sexual assault victims.
However, the very same holds true for Broaddrick and her claims against Clinton.
Sexual assault is never okay. Those who sexually assault anyone, women, men or children, can and should be condemned in the harshest terms. It’s a crime that everyone, across all political views, religions and skin colors, should be trying to eradicate permanently.
Broaddrick seems genuine in her desire to bring justice to an alleged sexual predator. Her refusal to gain any monetary benefit from her claims attest to this.
Good for her.
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