{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://norton.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/norton-requests-to-testify-at-hearing-on-sexual-harassment-in-congress", "Norton Requests to Testify at Hearing on Sexual Harassment in Congress", "2017-11-08", "2017", "2017-11", "Democrat", "House", "DC", "Eleanor Norton", "N000147", "norton.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C.\u2014The office of Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today released Norton\u2019s letter to the House Administration Committee requesting to testify at an upcoming committee hearing on the House\u2019s sexual harassment policies, including whether to require Members and staff to complete sexual harassment training.\u00a0 The hearing is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, November 14, 2017, at 10:00 a.m., in 1310 Longworth House Office Building.\u00a0 As the first woman to chair the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Norton issued the first guidelines holding sexual harassment to be a violation of equal employment laws, and the U.S. Supreme Court later upheld those guidelines.\u00a0 Last week, Norton introduced a bill to offer congressional employees the same workplace protections, including required sexual harassment training, as other federal and private sector workers.\u00a0 Norton has required herself and her congressional staff to complete sexual harassment training, and has urged her colleagues to mandate training even before a formal House requirement.\nIn her letter, Norton wrote, \u201cI understand that the committee is reviewing the House\u2019s sexual harassment policies, and I believe that my past role as Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) could provide valuable insight for the committee as it undertakes its review.\u00a0 I was appointed in 1977 to the EEOC as the first woman Chair, and enforced federal job discrimination laws, such as Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which bars job discrimination.\u00a0 As Chair, I issued the first guidelines holding sexual harassment to be a violation of equal employment laws, and the Supreme Court upheld our guidelines.\u201d\nNorton\u2019s full letter is below.\nThe Honorable Gregg Harper\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0  \n\tChairman\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0  \n\tHouse Administration Committee\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0  \n\t1309 Longworth House Office Building  \n\tWashington, DC 20515\nThe Honorable Robert Brady\u00a0\u00a0  \n\tRanking Member  \n\tHouse Administration Committee  \n\t1307 Longworth House Office Building  \n\tWashington, DC 20515\nDear Chairman Harper and Ranking Member Brady:\nI write to request to testify at the House Administration Committee\u2019s hearing on November 14, 2017, which will focus on sexual harassment awareness training.\u00a0 I understand that the committee is reviewing the House\u2019s sexual harassment policies, and I believe that my past role as Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) could provide valuable insight for the committee as it undertakes its review.\u00a0 I was appointed in 1977 to the EEOC as the first woman Chair, and enforced federal job discrimination laws, such as Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which bars job discrimination.\u00a0 As Chair, I issued the first guidelines holding sexual harassment to be a violation of equal employment laws, and the Supreme Court upheld our guidelines.\nMore recently, I led a letter with our House colleagues, Representative Jackie Speier and Representative Brenda Lawrence, asking Members to take action on their own to require sexual harassment training in our offices while our bills that mandate training are pending.\u00a0 I have taken these actions myself and see no reason why Members should not immediately act on their own to protect their staff from workplace harassment.\nI look forward to hearing from you.\nSincerely,\nEleanor Holmes Norton\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://norton.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/norton-requests-to-testify-at-hearing-on-sexual-harassment-in-congress"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9076339192688465, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}