Not even 24 hours after Kristen Raworth took to Twitter to expose alleged sexual harassment by Calgary Liberal MP Kent Hehr, she came back online to offer what she called her “last public comment” on the matter.
Raworth said she was told to avoid then-MLA Kent Hehr on her first day working at the Alberta Legislature.
“He made verbally sexually suggestive comments to all of us,” she wrote on Twitter Wednesday night, also noting he once said to her “you’re yummy.”
Hehr resigned from Cabinet Thursday afternoon, but is staying on as MP for Calgary Centre.
After the announcement of the resignation, Raworth took to social media once again to offer what she said would be her final public comment on the matter.
She reiterated that many other women had gone through similar experiences and that more work needed to be done to support women in her situation.
“First off, I assure you that this isn’t just my experience. It’s the experience of many people who experience sexual harassment in political work,” she wrote Thursday night.
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“Mr. Hehr resigned today, but this can’t be the end of the conversation. Because this isn’t about him. Or me. We need to continue to support survivors and we need to continue to make politics a place for women.”
Raworth also said that party politics aren’t part of the situation: “I am not a conservative. I am not a liberal. I am a survivor.”
She says she still believe politics can do good in the world, despite a negative experience.
“Let me just say I love politics because it has the power to do such good. I fell in love with politics and democracy when I was 18. But loving something doesn’t mean you’re blind to its faults. Politics needs to change,” Raworth wrote.
While she said she wouldn’t offer any more public comments on the matter she urged reporter who wants to follow the story to “profile the sexual assault centers across our country who support survivors every day.”
She also thanked her colleagues and friends for their support.
“You’ve all given me hope that we will make the political arena a place where everybody can contribute their best without fear or harm.
Hehr is the third major Canadian politician to resign in two days. Both Nova Scotia’s and Ontario’s leader of their Progressive Conservative parties resigned after allegations of sexual misconduct.
Hehr released a statement to announce his resignation several hours after the allegations came to light. He did not corroborate nor did he deny the claims in his statement, saying only that he would “welcome and respect the process.”
“I have been informed that an investigation into these allegations has begun and I welcome and respect this process. While this is ongoing, I have resigned from Cabinet pending the outcome of the investigation. I do not want to be a distraction to all the good work being done by our government.”
Raworth initially posted her comments after she heard of the allegations against Ontario’s Patrick Brown.
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