I keep thinking of Anita Hill and Clarence Thomas. Nineteen years ago the nation was riveted to the type of drama that unfolds before me every day. How do I, and how does the public, decide about truth telling? So often I hear people say “it’s he said/she said and so you can never determine who is telling the truth.” But we must be able to determine “truth”, and take stands, without a direct witness. Too often that elusive witness simply does not exist. Workplace investigators like me have to carefully weigh evidence and come to a conclusion, realizing we can’t be a guarantor of the truth. In the case of Anita Hill, had politics not been paramount, I think the weighing would have militated for a different result. This new witness helps to confirm that.
