Fox News host Tucker Carlson has been accused of victim blaming after he said that it was a sexual assault victim’s “obligation as a citizen” to go to the police.
In his opening monologue on Tuesday night, Carlson weighed in on the assault allegation made by Christine Blasey Ford against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
The psychology professor at Palo Alto University in California, who goes by Christine Blasey professionally, told The Washington Post that she had feared Kavanaugh “might inadvertently kill” her as he held her down and groped her while they were high school students in the 1980s.
Referring to the attention that Blasey’s allegation has received ― including Sen. Mazie Hirono’s message that the men in this country should “just shut up and step up. Do the right thing for a change” ― Carlson said that victims of sexual abuse should rely on due process and avoid having “trial by CNN.”
“It’s pretty straightforward. If you believe a crime has been committed against you, you report it,” he said. “Go to the police. It’s not always easy, obviously, but it’s still your obligation as a citizen, not least to protect the rest of us from whomever you believe did it.”
Watch Carlson’s segment in the clip above.
Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.