Democratic Party must learn to respect survivors of sexual misconduct and abuse

The California Democratic Party is struggling with the reality of sexual misconduct allegations on two fronts. One is playing out here in our state, while there’s a larger reckoning playing out nationally.

The CDP is searching for a path that supports survivors of sexual assault while also managing political goals that will determine the civic future of our state and nation. As a party, we need to implement a central lesson from the #MeToo Movement: We must center survivors.

Being survivor-centered means acknowledging the testimony of survivors and working with them to reach a resolution that prioritizes their wellbeing and safety instead of protecting the interests of their abusers and the institutions that enable them.

Recently, Marcos Bretón published an opinion piece regarding the politicization of allegations of sexual assault by then-Senator Joe Biden. Bretón wrote persuasively that this matter was the latest in a long line of incidents used as political fodder with the plight of survivors appearing to take a back seat to political attacks. It is difficult to ignore that supporters of Biden are his staunchest defenders while Republicans have unsurprisingly taken the opposite position.

Meanwhile, the California Democratic Party is in the midst of determining how to handle the publication of an investigative report into the long pattern of harassment and sexual assault by former Chair Eric Bauman. These allegations have been generally accepted as true through media reports, litigation and witness statements.

They resulted in a reported $2.9 million dollar settlement by the party. Current Chair Rusty Hicks has been rightly credited for establishing a robust response and investigative mechanism for new claims, however, two weeks ago, he undermined these efforts when he chose to seal the Bauman report.

In both cases, survivors are still not being centered despite all that we have learned from the #MeToo movement over the past several years. Again and again, people in positions of power, whether Democrat or Republican, men or not, revert to protecting power and political goals instead of supporting survivors through the best practices suggested in these matters.

With reference to Biden, the appropriate remedy is an independent survivor-centered investigation that addresses credible corroborating evidence from the survivor and examines any opposing evidence.

Until that investigation is completed, no politician should be making public statements affirming Biden’s denials or definitively stating that the allegations are the unassailable truth. In recent days, we have seen many unfortunate examples of the former and few or none of the latter.

With regard to the investigation report into former CDP Chair Bauman, the survivors have put forward reasonable suggestions striking a balance that the party should have proposed from the outset. Under pressure, Hicks has agreed to have the report reviewed by an attorney and a trauma expert for possible partial release.

Survivors and a number of party leaders, including myself, Christine Pelosi and many other CDP caucus chairs, have proposed that the report be made available for review by a panel that will put the needs of survivors ahead of any political interest for the party. Hicks has not responded to this proposal since it was first published on April 27.

Listening to survivors means implementing reasonable demands for transparency. Independent investigations and review panels are the hallmarks of a fair process. However, we should not be so naive as to conclude that these solutions are facile.

They require political courage to implement and organizational diligence to accomplish but they are worth pursuing. As Democrats, it is imperative that we continue to implement measures in support of survivors, especially when it is not in our immediate political interest to do so.