Last night, the death of former first lady Barbara Bush prompted a flood of tributes dedicated to the 92-year-old, including ones from Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, and Bushβs son and 43rd POTUS George W. Bush.
But one tweet posted by the Womenβs MarchΒ Twitter account is facing criticism from those claiming Bushβs legacy contradicts the organization's brand of feminism. The tweet includes of a photo of Bush with the words βrest in peace and power.β
Critics of the tweet cited Bushβs past opinions on Anita Hill and some controversial comments she made about Hurricane Katrina survivors. One user posted a passage from Bushβs 1994 memoir in which she discusses her thoughts on Hillβs famous sexual harassment claims against Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas. In the passage, Bush basically delegitimizesΒ Hillβs accusations and is dismissive of βwomenβs groups,β like the Womenβs March organization. βAll the womenβs groups are up in arms and the hue and cry for Clarenceβs blood can be heard from every side,β she wrote. βIt is setting a picture that anyone can testify if he or she wants and cause doubts.β
Yahoo points out that in 2005, Bush was criticized when she said that evacuated survivors of Hurricane would be able to handle the situation because they were βunderprivileged anyway.β Bush'sΒ controversial comments attributed to the criticism of the organization's tweet, along with general sentiments that the phrase βrest in powerβ is usually reserved for those denied power or justice while they were aliveβnot to the powerful and privileged like Bush and her family. See more of the criticism below.