These days Hill teaches people about sexual harassment and racism---but from a podium lit by spotlight.

The former University of Oklahoma law professor, who testified against Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas at his confirmation hearing in 1991, spoke on the Ball State University campus June 28 at the National Women's Music Festival. The conference, begun in 1974 to showcase under-represented women in the music industry, features women artists, vendors, musicians, comedians and speakers.

"I spent my entire life trying to dress up, shielding myself from racism and sexism," Hill told the audience of more than 1,000 in Emens Auditorium. "Only to find myself in Washington, D.C., in October. I learned I had nothing to hide."

Hill warned of the personal cost of standing up against sexual harassment and racism, including financial loss and the loss of privacy or even family and friends.

There is also value to standing up for what you believe in, she said. "Now, I'm not recommending that you go up against a U.S. Senate hearing. What I'm telling you is that when people as powerful as U.S. Senators try to destroy you, you can survive."

Proof of Hill's survival includes the book she wrote detailing her life, the experiences she had while working with Thomas at two federal agencies and how she found the strength to come forward with her story.

Hill said she had to overcome her "voicelessness" to speak against Thomas' confirmation.

"Today we're going to celebrate the end of voicelessness," Hill said to the festival attendees. "Your very presence here proves that many of you are making this same journey. We have to keep asking, keep demanding."

Hill's speech ended the four-day conference's string of musical performances, workshops and comedy shows. Among other guests were Dorothy Allison, the author of "Bastard Out of Carolina," comedian Kate Clinton and folk singer and activist Holly Near.

The festival is produced by Women in the Arts, Inc., a national organization that sponsors programs to promote and affirm the creative and technical skills of women in the visual, performing and fine arts.