Press Releases

Today, Congressman Cedric L. Richmond (D-LA-02), the Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, released the following statement in response to sexual harassment and sexual assault allegations made against members of Congress:

“The Congressional Black Caucus’ (CBC) position on sexual harassment and sexual assault is clear: no matter the perpetrator, no matter the victim, those responsible for sexual harassment and/or sexual assault must be held accountable. 

“The CBC has been made aware of some very serious and disturbing allegations against our colleague John Conyers, as well as his statement emphatically denying these allegations. We encourage and expect Mr. Conyers to cooperate fully with any and all investigations into this matter.

“Those who come to work in Congress and elsewhere have a right to a workplace free of unwanted sexual behavior and the CBC will continue our efforts to protect this right. In October, our members introduced and supported legislation to require mandatory sexual harassment training for congressional staff and we will support efforts to require mandatory sexual harassment training for members.

“However, we have not waited on congressional action when it comes to this issue. We held a sexual harassment training for CBC chiefs of staff on Monday, November 20 and will schedule the same training for CBC members and other staffers after Thanksgiving. We also will support other efforts currently underway to improve the sexual harassment complaint process in Congress.”