Sexual Harassment

CAIRO — Waleed Hammad dressed conservatively for his secret mission into the world of sexual harassment and abuse on the streets of Cairo, donning a long tan skirt and sleeved shirt, and at times covering his head like many Egyptian women. The 24-year-old actor walked the sidewalks, hidden cameras in tow, for an investigative television report, hoping the broadcast would enlighten national debate about how to combat deep-rooted day-to-day sexual harassment and abuse in this...

ALBANY, N.Y. — Democratic New York City Assemblyman Vito Lopez says he will resign amid a sexual harassment scandal and run for New York City council. Lopez says he'll step down June 20. Lopez has been under growing pressure after it was revealed the state secretly paid women $103,000 to settle sexual harassment claims against the one-time Brooklyn power broker. Two blistering reports this week, from a special prosecutor and the state's Joint Commission on Public Ethics,...

A nursing administrator at Howard University Hospital alleged in a lawsuit yesterday that Howard's chairman of emergency medicine routinely subjected her to "unwelcome touching, sexual demands, vulgar and sexually explicit remarks" and other harassment last year after both were hired to improve patient care in the hospital's emergency room. In a complaint filed in D.C. Superior Court, Evelyn White, 52, who was hired in March 2007 as Howard's director of emergency and trauma care, accuses physician Geoffrey Mountvarner, 40, of...

"It is time we take on the fight against sexual assault and sexual harassment as our primary mission. " — Gen. Ray Odierno, the Army chief of staff, saying trust between soldiers and their leaders has been violated by a recent string of misconduct cases. ___ "The American people deserve to have the utmost confidence and trust in their government, and as we work to get to the bottom of what happened and restore confidence in the IRS, Danny has the experience and management ability necessary to lead the agency at this important time.

As skeptics, atheists and humanists prepare to gather for their largest meeting in Las Vegas this weekend, attendance by women is expected to be down significantly. Officials for The Amazing Meeting, or TAM, said Wednesday (July 11) that women would make up 31 percent of the 1,200 conference attendees, down from 40 percent the year before. A month before the conference, pre-registration was only 18 percent women, organizers said. The explanations are many — the bad economy, that women, as caregivers, are less able to get...

A federal judge has set aside a $3.5 million jury award to a former public pool lifeguard in the District who alleged she was sexually harassed by a supervisor and then fired in retaliation for complaining about the conduct. Chief U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth, who presided over the trial last summer, wrote this week that the conduct alleged is "no doubt disgusting and extremely troubling, and the jury had good reason to be disturbed by the facts. " ...

When sexual harassment claims against Republican candidate Herman Cain emerged this past week, his campaign first denied the allegations, then acknowledged a settlement to one woman and, eventually, blamed rival Rick Perry's camp . One untested tactic: Contend that the allegedly harassed employees at the National Restaurant Association were paid salaries that compensated them for that very risk. "Workers receive a wage premium for exposure to the risk of sexual harassment in much the same way...

Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain faced a new set of political challenges Monday after graphic allegations by a Chicago woman raised questions among GOP operatives and activists about the candidate's ability to survive the growing scandal. After eight days of accusations and denials of alleged sexual harassment by Cain, the specific and explicit nature of the new allegations could threaten his position among a core group of supporters who have stood by him, or at least stayed...

SATURDAY, March 8 (HealthDay News) -- Persistent criticism, belittling comments, bullying and other forms of workplace aggression may inflict more harm on employees than sexual harassment, according to a Canadian study. "As sexual harassment becomes less acceptable in society, organizations may be more attuned to helping victims, who may therefore find it easier to cope. In contrast, non-violent forms of workplace aggression such as incivility and bullying are not illegal, leaving victims to...

A federal jury in Alexandria has ruled that the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department knew of and tolerated a male lieutenant's sexual harassment of a female firefighter and has awarded her $250,000. The county is facing a second federal trial next month involving allegations of years of far more intense and continual harassment of another female firefighter by her male colleagues and superiors. Fairfax County spokeswoman Merni Fitzgerald declined to comment on either the jury's verdict or the...

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama said Thursday the nation's military leaders told him they are "ashamed" of their failure to end sexual abuse in the armed services. Obama pledged to "leave no stone unturned" in the effort to halt the abuse, which he said undermines the trust the military needs to be effective. Obama also said he has asked Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Martin Dempsey to lead a process to root out the problem. "They care...

SEOUL, South Korea — A South Korean presidential spokesman who was fired after inappropriately touching a woman during a U.S. trip blames a "cultural difference" with America. Other South Koreans say the fault for such incidents truly lies with a society that allows powerful men to get away with harassment. Five months after the country elected its first female leader, Park Geun-hye, last week's incident involving her spokesman Yoon Chang-jung marred her first...

CAIRO — Waleed Hammad dressed conservatively for his secret mission into the world of sexual harassment and abuse on the streets of Cairo, donning a long tan skirt and sleeved shirt, and at times covering his head like many Egyptian women. The 24-year-old actor walked the sidewalks, hidden cameras in tow, for an investigative television report, hoping the broadcast would enlighten national debate about how to combat deep-rooted day-to-day sexual harassment and abuse...

For practical advice about how women can thrive and control their destinies, check out " Lean In " by Facebook's ever-gracious COO, Sheryl Sandberg . But maybe after a hard day of believing in yourself and using "we" words, you just want to luxuriate in a fire of cleansing rage. Go ahead: Push the billionaire's affirmations aside and listen instead to the she-devil in Claire Messud's ferocious new novel. Lean in — she'll singe your eyebrows off. " The Woman Upstairs "...

A federal judge has set aside a $3.5 million jury award to a former public pool lifeguard in the District who alleged she was sexually harassed by a supervisor and then fired in retaliation for complaining about the conduct. Chief U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth, who presided over the trial last summer, wrote this week that the conduct alleged is "no doubt disgusting and extremely troubling, and the jury had good reason to be disturbed by the facts. " But he agreed with the...

NEW DELHI — The Indian Parliament's lower house passed a landmark law Tuesday that sets tougher penalties for rapists and for police officers who refuse to file a woman's complaint of rape, as well as criminalizing offenses such as stalking, voyeurism and acid attacks. The amendments to existing law incorporate some of the sweeping changes that were demanded after the fatal gang rape of a young paramedical student in New Delhi in December, an incident that sparked a nationwide outcry against the lack of safety...

In his seven years, Randy Castro has been an aspiring soccer player, an accomplished Lego architect and a Royal Ranger at his Pentecostal church. He also, according to his elementary school record, sexually harassed a first-grade classmate. During recess at his Woodbridge school one day in November, when he was 6, he said, he smacked the classmate's bottom. The girl told the teacher. The teacher took Randy to the principal, who told him such behavior was inappropriate. School officials wrote an incident report calling it...

Herman Cain's campaign faced more uncomfortable questions about the businessman's past with women as a third woman who had worked for the National Restaurant Association claimed to have been harassed. As Karen Tumulty and Krissah Thompson reported : Former restaurant executive Herman Cain faced a new set of sexual harassment allegations Wednesday, with a report that a third former employee had described unwanted, sexually aggressive behavior from him and a Republican pollster...

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has ordered the military to stop production of a controversial new medal pending a 30-day study of whether the award for drone pilots and cyberwarriors should outrank medals given for battlefield bravery. Pentagon spokesman George Little said that Hagel was particularly attuned to the concerns of veterans organizations, which have complained that the Distinguished Warfare Medal was ranked above the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart in the military's order of precedence.

A recent string of operational problems and misconduct allegations has embroiled the D.C. fire department and prompted concerns that a dysfunctional agency is undermining public safety. The department's troubles run the gamut: a labor-management spat over a visit by firefighters to the White House, charges of sexual harassment at the training academy, and the death by heart attack of a man who waited 29 minutes for an ambulance on a day when more than 100 firefighters...