'A Little Too Close, A Little Too Brazen': College GOP Chair Describes Sexual Harassment She Endured In Party
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A leader among Minnesota Republicans is publicly sharing her story of sexual harassment within the party. WCCO spoke with her about how she hopes coming forward can be a step toward making the GOP a more welcoming place for young women.
It took coming into a position of leadership for Nia Moore to feel safe enough to come forward about her experience thus far in politics.
"It is still very male heavily dominated. You never want to rub people the wrong way or burn a bridge. It can be difficult to weigh the opportunity cost," Moore said.
A junior at St. Thomas, Moore is the chair of the Minnesota College Republicans. Three weeks ago, she tweeted a statement detailing months of sexual harassment from multiple male GOP staffers.
"Some men were just a little too close or a little too brazen with their words. Nothing too bad, but again, just still inappropriate," she said.
Moore said sometimes there was inappropriate touching, too -- but she's less interested in talking about the specifics than about working to change this kind of culture in her party.
"What kind of party do I want to lead? And what kind of party do I want to be a part of? And this was, you know, getting rid of, you know, the dirty secrets and everything behind the closet was something that was important to a lot of us," she said.
The GOP said in a statement it's "committed to cultivating a welcoming, positive work environment." An outside firm will investigate allegations and the party said it will act on the firm's recommendations, as well as review and update HR policies.
Moore is confident in the direction the GOP is moving.
"Victims that may experience something will have a lot better support system and feel a lot safer to come forward," she said.
Moore said multiple women, and men, have shared their stories of harassment with her since she first went public with hers. She told WCCO the men who harassed her are no longer with the party. She also said it's unfortunate that Jennifer Carnahan, the former party chair who resigned last month, didn't do more to stand with victims.
