Fighting for Increased Transparency in the State Legislature
After official findings that former Brooklyn Assembly Member Vito Lopez engaged in serial sexual harassment against several of his employees over a period of many years, and the revelation that a secret settlement involving the expenditure of public funds had been struck last year between the Assembly and some of the earlier complainants, I spoke out publicly to demand a full accounting of the way in which the initial investigation, and the subsequent confidentiality agreement, were handled.
Sexual harassment of any kind cannot be tolerated, particularly in a legislative body whose members are elected by and accountable to the people they represent. And, while maintaining the confidentiality of those subject to sexual harassment is a worthy goal, it should never serve as a pretext to shield the substantiated behavior of a public official like that of former Assembly Member Lopez. Doing so only increases the odds of allowing a repeat offender to engage in harassing behavior again and again – which is exactly what happened after the confidential settlement was struck last year.