We are working to protect victims, including passing four of my bills to dismantle the harassment protection machine.

Dear friend,

 

We just had a big week up in Albany.

 

For years, I have been working with fierce advocates like the Sexual Harassment Working Group to bring New York’s anti-harassment laws into the 21st century and dismantle the systems that perpetuate the harassment protection machine: the laws and norms that protects abusers and silence victims of workplace harassment. 

 

This week, the State Senate passed four of my bills to protect victims of sexual harassment and hold abusers accountable for their actions. Two of these bills have also passed the State Assembly, and are now headed to the Governor’s desk for her signature.

 

I’m incredibly proud of this work, because if we are serious about the condemnation we express whenever abusers are caught, we must also be willing to change the laws that protect harassers and leave survivors vulnerable. Taken together, these bills will help to dismantle the structures that perpetuate workplace harassment and discrimination and promote inclusive and supportive workplaces.

While I continue to work with my colleagues in the legislature to make sure all of these bills become law, I’m particularly excited that S5870 and S3395A are now on their way to the Governor’s desk. S5870 prohibits the release of an employee’s personnel record as a form of retaliation against someone who files a complaint or report of improper workplace conduct, and gives an employee legal recourse against an employer who tries to retaliate in that way. S3395A ensures that all employees in the state are subject to the protection of New York’s Human Rights Law, closing the “license to harass” loophole that exempted the personal staff of government officials and judicial officers. 

 

We all bear a responsibility to systematically dismantle the institutions and cultures that foster and perpetuate harassment and work to change the norms - and laws - that protect harassers and their enablers. Our work isn’t done, but every day we fight is another day closer to a truly harassment-free world.

 

Thank you, as always, for your ongoing support, 

Andrew

 

Andrew for New York

725 70th Street, Apt C1

Brooklyn, New York 11228

 

 

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