At one time, people who praised Andrew Cuomo were impressed by how well he handled the pandemic and created a program that educated about sexual harassment. I was one of them.
Like many others, I am now angry and feel betrayed by Cuomo’s sexual harassment and assault against at least 11 women.
He did many things right, but that doesn’t excuse his sexist actions. Like so many other rich, white, and powerful men, it appears that he thinks if he wanted sex, that’s all that mattered. Her consent was not required.
“Cuomo harassed multiple women, many of whom were young women, by engaging in unwanted groping, kisses, hugging, and by making inappropriate comments.”
“Cuomo reached under his executive assistant’s blouse and cupped her breast, she told investigators. On another occasion, he asked to take a selfie with her — then grabbed her butt cheek and began to rub it. He made sexualized comments (“If you were single, the things I would do to you”) and demanded hugs, “pushing my body against his,” when she left the governor’s mansion.”
“In my mind, I’ve never crossed the line with anyone, but I didn’t realize the extent to which the line has been redrawn,” Cuomo said.
Cuomo resigned, blaming society for changing the lines of behavior. No, the lines of appropriate behavior were not redrawn; way too many men just ignored them. Abuse is abuse, it was then, and it is now. When I was in the 8th grade, a substitute teacher did the same thing that Cuomo is accused of: putting his hand under my blouse and grabbing my breast. It turned out that I wasn’t the only one molested this way. We reported his actions to the school principal, and all they did was transfer him to another school. Even then, in 1964, powerful men protect other men. It happens with the Catholic church and priests assaulted kids. It happened with Jeffery Epstein protecting people like Donald Trump and Prince Andrew.
“The once mighty Andrew Cuomo gave New Yorkers two weeks notice (who does that when resigning public office?). Still, he admitted no serious wrongdoing and portrayed himself — not the many women who accused him of sexual harassment — as the real victim.”
The lines of appropriate behavior haven’t changed. Behavior like this has always been wrong. It’s just now we are speaking out about and calling out the slimeballs who think it’s okay to take what isn’t theirs to take.
There was just an aspect of Andrew Cuomo most of us didn’t see: “short-tempered to the point of [being] abusive, was vain about publicity in ways that stood out even by the standards of politicians, and where he went, drama and personal conflict inevitably followed.”
Cuomo didn’t resign because he knew he was guilty and his actions were wrong, but because he didn’t want to be impeached, and that could have prevented him from running for office again.
“Cuomo’s transition from office will take 14 days and marks a stunning departure from the asshole-ish responses the governor has been offering since being hit with allegations that he was wildly inappropriate while in office.”
“Cuomo’s decision to step down represents a crushing defeat for the three-term governor, ending his nearly 11-year domination of state government that was known for its liberal policy victories and a hard-knuckle style of politics marked by bullying, intimidation and retribution.”
Interesting that they use the word “domination,” as it seems that Cuomo is what expected in his life, especially when dealing with women.
I wonder what he will tell his daughters about his behavior, that he both condemned and then acted on? I wonder what he would do and say if one of his daughters had been treated in this way? Or all three of them? Would he justify it as a misunderstanding? A “he-said-she-said”?
Will other powerful men learn from this event? It’s doubtful. They didn’t when it happened to Bill Clinton, Bill Cosby, Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, and dozens of others, including three Kentucky state representatives as well as one from my own state!!
Of course, to these “men”, all of the women are lying. As usual, if a dozen women say it happened, everyone wants proof, but if one man says it didn’t happen, he is believed.
https://www.theroot.com/ny-gov-andrew-cuomo-resigns-after-scathing-report-deta-1847458207?u
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/08/03/disgrace-downfall-andrew-cuomo/
moondancepages.com 