U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Public Briefing:
Federal Me Too: Examining Sexual Harassment in Government Workplaces
Thursday, May 9, 2019, Washington, DC
The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will hold a public briefing to examine the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) enforcement efforts to combat workplace sexual harassment across the federal government, including the frequency of such claims and findings of harassment, the resources dedicated to preventing and redressing harassment, and the impact and efficacy of these enforcement efforts. The briefing will also examine agency-level practices to address sexual harassment at the U.S. Department of State and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Commissioners will hear from current and former government officials, academic and legal experts, advocates, and individuals who have experienced harassment (see agenda below). The Commission will issue a report from this investigation.
DATE
Thursday, May 9, 2019
LOCATION
National Place Building, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite 1150, Washington, DC 20425 (Entrance on F St. NW)
Also live-streaming
Introductory Remarks: Chair Catherine E. Lhamon: 9:00 am – 9:10 am
Panel One: EEOC & Outside Experts: 9:10 am – 10:40 am
- Congresswoman Jackie Speier
- Dexter Brooks, Associate Director, Federal Sector Programs, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
- Sunu Chandy, Legal Director, National Women’s Law Center
- George Chuzi, Attorney, Kalijarvi, Chuzi, Newman, & Fitch
Break: 10:40 am – 10:50 am
Panel Two: State Department, NASA, & STEM organizations: 10:50 am – 12:10 pm
- Gregory Smith, Director, Office of Civil Rights and Chief Diversity Officer, U.S. Department of State
- Jenna Ben-Yehuda, President & CEO, Truman National Security Project
- Stephen Shih, Associate Administrator, Diversity & Equal Opportunity, NASA
- Heather Metcalf, Chief Research Officer, Association for Women in Science
Break: 12:10 pm – 1:10 pm
Panel Three: Academics and Community Stakeholders: 1:10 pm – 2:30 pm
- Christine Back, Legislative Attorney, Congressional Research Service
- Tamara Chrisler, Managing Policy Director, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
- Donald Tomaskovic-Devey, Professor of Sociology & Executive Director, Center for Employment Equity, University of Massachusetts-Amherst
- Rhonda Davis, Head of Office of Diversity and Inclusion, National Science Foundation
- Louise Fitzgerald, Professor Emerita, Psychology, Women Studies, & Management, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Break: 2:30 pm – 2:40 pm
Panel Four: Legal and Community Experts: 2:40 pm – 4:00 pm
- Dariely Rodriguez, Director of Economic Justice Project, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
- Mona Charen, Senior Fellow, Ethics & Public Policy Center
- Jane Liu, Legal Director, National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
- Debra Katz, Attorney, Katz, Marshall & Banks
Break: 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Open Public Comment Session: 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm (End time subject to change)
Members of the public in attendance who wish to address the Commission will have an opportunity to do so. Each individual will have up to five minutes to speak, with spots allotted on a first-come, first-serve basis. Individuals will be able to register for peaking slots, both online and in-person at the briefing.
Adjourn Briefing: 6:30 pm (End time subject to change)
The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, established by the Civil Rights Act of 1957, is the only independent, bipartisan agency charged with advising the President and Congress on civil rights and reporting annually on federal civil rights enforcement. Our 51 state Advisory Committees offer a broad perspective on civil rights concerns at state and local levels. For information about the Commission, please visit www.usccr.gov and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.