Virginia Jackie Glass said that she got a “safety summary” when she joined the legislative body.

“I was told who do not go to drink, and who is not alone and who should arrange,” she said inState groundIn 2024, the male spokeswoman addresses, “I don’t think you got this summary.”

Democrat was discussing a culture spread of sexual misconduct in the state, which remains though#METoo MovementHit the critical mass in 2017.

The movement overthrewPoliticiansCelebrities and others throughout the country. The allegations of harassment and misconduct, some of them for many years, have appeared with a highlight of a toxic culture as this behavior may have been rampant and acceptable like the silence that buried them.

Many state legislative bodies have responded by adopting or strengthening policies against sexual misconduct. asThe number of legislators in the stateIt reaches new horizons, some say that the status homes are less than the “Children’s Club”.

But allegations continue on the roof – at the state levelAnd beyond.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Glas asked why she was encouraging women to join the legislative ranks when little changed.

She said, “I do not know how to preserve women – completely frankly, people – safe when it seems to go alongside work.”

12 scales of lawmakers accused in 8 years

Since 2017The Associated Press classified at least 147 legislators in the state in 44 states accused of sexual harassment or sexual misconduct.

More than a third resigned or was expelled from his position and about a third of the repercussions facing, such as the loss of leadership positions of the party or the committee. Dozens of senior executives in the state, including conservatives and public lawyers, faced allegations of sexual misconduct during that time, and most of them resigned.

The total includes incidents in the state government and abroad. This includes the Republican Senator in Minnesota Justin Ithorn, whoHe resigned on Thursday after accusing himWith a minor of prostitution. On Thursday, a federal defender said Ishorn was still in the appointment of a private lawyer.

Most allegations were reported inThe first two years of #MetooBut more appeared every year since then.

In 2024 alone, AP has achieved at least 14 legislators in the state of dozens of states that accused – about twice up to the previous year.

According to the National Women’s Defense Association, which calls for sexual harassment policies in cases of sexual harassment in cases of harassment and maintaining their own number,Republicans and Democrats are almost accusedAnd 94 % of these are generally men.

New policies and training, but not always transparency

AP study for legislative chambers in each state, conducted from last November to January, found that about half of them updated themSexual harassment policiesOver the past five years.

For example, the legislative body in Nevada expanded its definition of sexual harassment to include “visual” behavior – such as degrading images or gestures.

The General Assembly in Kentucky added sexual harassment to a list.Moral misconduct“Take action after several years of revelation that four of the legislators signed a secret settlement of sexual harassment with an employee.

Near the beginning of #Metoo, AP is found about a third of the legislative rooms to demand legislators to train in sexual harassment.

It offers almost all legislative bodies of the state now, although they are not always mandatory, content, coordination and frequency.

Academic experts and women’s advocacy groups say frequent training is the best-it is carried out in person and with real life scenarios. While most rooms offer personal training, about a third of the country’s rooms are training annually, according to AP.

Not every transparent legislative room about its policies or efforts to reduce sexual harassment and misconduct, though.

The Senate in Oklahoma and both the Legislative Council in Western Virginia refused to provide sexual harassment policies to AP, stressing that they are internal documents exempt from detection. The Senate at Mississippi did not respond to the requests of his written policy.

The Senate in Arkansas is the only legislative chamber without a specific sexual harassment policy, but the Legal Consultant in the Senate said it has the law of ethics and the authority of discipline.

California lawmakers have established an independent body of the Legislative Authority to investigate sexual harassment reports with the connection line. However, the results of the investigation are publicly issued only if the complaint is found against the legislator or a high -level employee.

“If this is what it takes to keep people act properly, then there is nothing wrong.”

Legionships and others are divided on whether anything has changed – and if so, then why.

Representative Abe Megur, a Republican in Pennsylvania, says that male colleagues have dealt with women better recentlySexual harassment scandals.

“If this is what is necessary to keep people act properly, then it is okay. I will be Bogman.”

Michigan Democratic Democrat McCmoro, who presented aSexual harassment complaintAgainst Republican Senator Peter Lucido in 2020, improvements said less related to political changes and more with the fact that more women are responsible.

“By our nature, we changed how the legislative body works,” she said.

Lucido did not respond to suspension requests.

According to the data kept by the American Women and Policy Center at the University of Rutgers, the number of legislators in the state witnessed the largest rise in 2018 since the nineties, largely driven by the success of democratic women.In the middle of that year. Women now occupy 33 % of all legislative seats in the country, thoughRepresentation varies by state.

Others still see sexual discrimination, especially in male -dominated majority rooms.

“Sometimes, it seems that we must smile more and not be turbulent and not to challenge anyone. This has not disappeared,” said Xia Roberts, a deputy in the state of Georgia, who resigned from the Democratic treasurer to protest after being accused last year of sexual harassment of an employee.

Sometimes progress has other consequences

Even with the update of sexual harassment and cultural transformations, the decision to report is fraught with risks.

Poor reports may be dealt with by a third or more common party, by ethics committees or assembly leadership. The accused of leaders and parties often think of power, according to the National Defense Association.

“This is a political workplace, and therefore the issues of harassment within the state are political by nature,” Emma Davidson Trippis, Foundation Director, told NWDL.

Experts say that the third party is very important to ensure a fair investigation and encourage reports.

Only about a quarter of the legislative rooms require external investigations when submitting these complaints, according to the AP survey. Dozens of others allow external investigations according to the estimation of legislative leaders separately.

The Legislative stock office in Oregon, which is investigating complaints, was found inThe annual reportIt was released earlier this month that legislative employees reached the office more than any other group.

Senator Sarah Ghiller Blueen, the state of Oregon, was one of two lawmakers who filed complaints about touching a co -Senate in 2017.

“I still remember the first time I played the radio and heard my name and the people who talk about my breasts or my thighs,” she said to AP. ))

Despite legal protection against revenge, the accused’s reputation and professions are often beaten after progress.

Gabriel Brock, who was then an Etisalat employee in Indiana, was twenty -three years old when she and the three women were accused at the time, lawyer General Cortis Hill, my Republic,Touch them at the 2018 party. Their accusations led to a session of misconduct before the state’s Supreme CourtHill Law license was suspended for 30 days.

Hill, who denied these allegations, lost the offer of his re -election for 2020 after that and ran in vain to the ruler in 2024.

Brock and other women left their government jobs as a result.

Brook said: “I felt that this story overwhelmed any work I was doing to the state, in order to gather at that time.”

Brock found a passion for working in the government, but he says that the state environment made it uncomfortable a place to work.

She said: “Every woman had a story of a kind of inappropriate interaction, primarily with an elected official.”

WomenI dropped a lawsuitAgainst Hill last December, saying, through their lawyers, they felt that the trial would not bring any relief – cash or otherwise.

When it was reached for the comment, Hill called the original allegations “mysterious” and “thin”.

“We blame the wrong people”

Men still make up two -thirds of all legislators in the state in the United States, and although #Metoo has primarily highlighted the voices of women, some say that the account gave them space to join women in discussing misconduct and learn about more work.

Republican MP Mark Shrebar from Kansas, who joined the legislature in 2017, said that he saw that “the children will be children” ethics when he started coming to the state state decades ago as an executive director of the accompanying company. This later gave the way to recognize harassment – while he was still blaming women.

In recent years, he said, the men have realized, “We blame the wrong people,” and “We need to correct the behavior of these men.”

Defenders and legislators alike hope the improvements continue, saying that hostile work environments remain widespread enough to prevent women from running for positions.

“When men run for positions, it is about whether they can do this task,” said Irene Mai Code, a member of the Minnesota Democratic Senate, said. “When women are nominated in favor of the position, it is much more about it.”

Many skepticism about the comprehensive progress of #MetooHe pointed to the allegations of sexual misconduct against many candidates for President Donald Trump and the president himself – many of them denied them.

“She sends a normalization message about this type of behavior,” said Deby Walsh, director of the American Women and Policy Center.

“I think things are better than it was. I think Metoo had an effect,” she added. “But this momentum must remain because it is not fixed within two years.”

This story was originally shown on Fortune.com

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2025-03-24 09:57:00