FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:Â November 22, 2017
Contact:Â Mallory Quigley, [email protected], 202-223-8073
Dannenfelser: OOC Process “provides preferential option for the offender…”
Washington, D.C. – The national pro-life group Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List) released the following statement today in response to media reports detailing the Congressional process for dealing with sexual harassment and sexual assault.
“The Office of Compliance process for dealing with sexual harassment and assault complaints is an outrageous offense against human dignity,” said SBA List President Marjorie Dannenfelser. “The process provides a preferential option for the offender by systematically and repeatedly delaying action and preventing the victim from speaking out. The governmental powers that be even go so far as to require the victim to stay in an environment she or he feels is abusive. No woman – or man – should be forced to remain in a situation where they feel uncomfortable or unsafe.”
The Hill reported that, since 1997, the House of Representatives has spent up to $15 million in taxpayer funding on settlements for victims of harassment and discrimination on Capitol Hill.
“Americans should not foot the bill for Members of Congress seeking to pay off victims of abuse,” Dannenfelser continued. “There is a dire need for transparency here, especially given the widespread and deep-seated cultural problem we are facing. Perpetrators of sexual harassment and assault rely on victims of their abuse to remain silent. The U.S. government should not create an environment that provides a disincentive to speak out. Members of Congress themselves, therefore, should be liable for their own actions. Transparency and accountability are not only the best remedies, they are the best preventives. Examination and reform of today’s OOC process is urgently needed.”
Susan B. Anthony List and its partner super PAC, Women Speak Out spent more than $18 million in the 2016 election cycle, knocking on more than 1.1 million doors in battleground states to defeat Hillary Clinton and maintain a pro-life Senate. SBA List is dedicated to pursuing policies and electing candidates who will reduce and ultimately end abortion. To that end, the SBA List emphasizes the education, promotion, mobilization, and election of pro-life women. Â The SBA List is a network of more than 600,000 pro-life Americans nationwide.
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