Former congresswoman Katie Hill is having an interesting week.
The former California representative announced news of a forthcoming film adaptation of her recently published book on Oct. 6. Hill, a Democrat, represented California’s 25th congressional district until last October, when she resigned following accusations of inappropriate sexual relationships with her staff. Following her resignation, Hill published a book about her time in politics titled “She Will Rise.”
Hill’s announcement, which was posted to her personal Twitter account, was met with enthusiasm from some, and irritation from others. Shortly following the news of a streaming adaptation of the book, produced by Blumhouse Television and starring Elizabeth Moss, Hill’s former congressional Twitter page went wild.
The tweets are supposedly penned by former staffers. Over the course of a 10-tweet thread, the unknown author tore into Hill’s history in politics, even divulging her abuse at the hands of an ex-husband. “Katie’s former staff here,” the Twitter thread begins. It goes on to express disappointment with Moss, as well as Blumhouse and producer Michael Seitzman. “This is an incredibly sensitive situation. We appreciate the instinct to defend our former boss, an LGBTQ+ woman who faced abuse from her husband.”
“What happened to Katie Hill shouldn’t happen to anyone,” the thread continues. “But, this moment requires more nuance, as Katie Hill’s story – our story – is also one of workplace abuse and harassment. Katie Hill can be both a victim and perpetrator.” The thread goes on to indicate that staffers who spoke out against Hill faced “severe consequences.”
“No one should have to put themselves in harm’s way for the public to understand a simple truth: Katie Hill is not a hero for women. We deserve heroes who embody our values even in the most difficult moments.”
The thread notes that Hill was “never investigated by the House Ethics Committee, nor has she been held accountable by anyone other than herself.”
When Hill resigned from her position, she was under investigation by a House Ethics panel. The investigation was examining claims that Hill had engaged in an inappropriate sexual relationship with a male staff member, according to Politico. Hill denied the accusations, but admitted to engaging in an inappropriate relationship with a female member of her staff.
“Katie took advantage of her subordinates. She caused immense harm to the people who worked for her, many of whom were young women just beginning their careers in politics.” The thread proceeds to discuss Hill’s abuse at the hands of her ex-husband, but notes that workplace abuse and harassment is never okay, even at the hands of a survivor. “While Katie is certainly the survivor of abuse, we are not confident that she sufficiently acted to end her own patterns of inappropriate and abusive behavior.”
The thread ends with a reminder to “acknowledge the problematic behaviors among those in our own communities.”
Soon after the thread began gaining steam on Twitter, Hill addressed it in a tweet from her personal account claiming her former congressional page was hacked. “Control of my account was immediately handed back to the House Clerk when I resigned, including password changes and access restrictions,” she wrote. “God knows who hacked it from there. Reported to @twitter.”
Blumhouse Television, Elizabeth Moss, and Michael Seitzman have yet to respond to the drama unfurling online. Hill has not spoken on whether the claims come from real former staffers, or hackers attempting to stir the political pot. Hill did not respond to the Daily Dot’s request for comment.
The Daily Dot’s 2020 election coverage
*First Published: Oct 7, 2020, 10:38 am
Nahila Bonfiglio
Nahila Bonfiglio reports on geek culture and gaming. Her work has also appeared on KUT’s Texas Standard (Austin), KPAC-FM (San Antonio), and the Daily Texan.
