For much of her life, Linda Fairstein was widely viewed as a law enforcement hero. She was one of the best-known prosecutors in the country. She then became a crime novelist and often appeared on high-profile panels and boards.
She ran the sex crimes division, and in 1989 a white woman jogging in Central Park was discovered viciously raped, beaten, and left for dead. In "When They See Us", Fairstein was portrayed as the driving force in the investigation and she even explained away facts that showed that the teens were innocent.
After "When They See Us" was released, there have been online petitions and even a hashtag (#CancelLindaFairstein) calling for a boycott of her books and her removal from prominent positions. Linda took down her own twitter account and resigned from the boards of several organizations (Safe Horizon, Joyful Heart Foundation, and Vassar College).
Back in 1993, she was named the women of the year in the magazine Glamour. However, Glamour has since published a letter saying that they would not bestow this honor on her today.
Her behavior during the case and after have been questioned by many. Fairstein had continued to write books and serve on important boards even after the convictions were overturned, so the case faded out of the spotlight. However, after the Netflix series was released, Fairstein has been made the target of public rage. Fairstein, who is now 72, calls her portrayal "grossly and maliciously inaccurate".
Daniel R. Alonso, a colleague of Fairstein at the DA office, believes that this case should not overshadow Ms. Fairstein's accomplishments. He says, " I think it's terrible to 'cancel' someone's entire career over one matter"
Whatever your opinion is on the woman, we can't necessarily believe that everything portrayed by the actress in the DocuSeries was entirely true. There are a lot of mistakes Fairstein has made, but Fairstein has also contributed a lot to a lot of people getting justice for rape.
Linda Fairstein in "When They See Us"
This is an interesting point you bring up of people judging others by one wrong thing they've done and forgetting the good they may have done. After reading this, I feel that while it's really terrible she screwed up, people shouldn't be screaming for her resignation for one mistake given how much other good she has done.
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