In Maryland politics, the reckoning on sexual harassment is here

Before I was elected to the state legislature, I worked as an advocate in Annapolis. I knew there was a certain “old boys club” culture that women worked around to get their jobs done. There were offices you didn’t enter without a buddy and committees that had a reputation for being hostile to women. The women legislators I admired were all tough as nails. To do their jobs well, they had to be.

After my election in 2010, I returned to Annapolis as a member of the House of Delegates. I was warned by colleagues that relationships are everything in politics, and, above all else, I must be likable. Eager to best represent my community, I tried to take their advice.

The first time a married senior colleague grabbed my rear end, I was shocked. It was my first legislative session, and I was still getting to know people. Two of my male colleagues witnessed this sustained and shameless public groping. I was utterly humiliated. The next morning I went into a female legislator’s office, closed the door and cried.

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