Author Joanne Lipman said that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s recently reported behavior toward women contributes to institutional sexism and fuels the vast disparities in pay, promotion, and opportunities.
“If we marginalize them [women], we don’t appreciate them that much, “Lipman said on CNBC’s” The News with Shepard Smith. ” If we don’t appreciate them that much, we don’t pay them that much, or we promote them that much, or give them the guidance, and it all adds to this ongoing institutional sexism that has really kept us from taking the steps we needed since the #MeToo movement. “
The pressure for Cuomo to resign is mounting after a third woman accused him of unwanted advances.
Lipman, who wrote “ That’s What She Said: What Men Need to Know (and Women Need to Tell Them) about Working Together, ” wrote to Shepard Smith that while Cuomo’s actions may not have been physical abuse, his “ casual sexism ” is a hindrance. constitutes equality for all.
“If you have guys like Cuomo – people in leadership positions – who have a really good game about equality for women and equality for people of color, but then you have these actions that go a little bit against it, it really, really diminishes the words that they say. And it really hurts the cause of equality for all of us, “Lipman said.
The third woman to come forward, Anna Ruch, said she met Cuomo at a wedding in 2019, where he put his hand on her lower back, put his hands on her cheeks and asked if he could kiss her, according to the New York Times. . . Cuomo has not commented on the accusation.
The White House confirmed on Tuesday that Ruch has been working on the Biden campaign as an organizer in southwest Florida.
“I can certainly speak on behalf of the President and Vice President, and so I want to reiterate that they both believe that any woman who comes forward should be heard, treated with dignity and treated with respect,” said Jen Psaki, White House press secretary.
Ruch didn’t work for Cuomo, but the other two women, Lindsey Boylan and Charlotte Bennett, are former aides who both claimed sexual harassment. Cuomo flatly denied Boylan’s claim. He also refuted Bennett’s allegations, saying his words had been “misinterpreted.”
Lipman explained that society is now much more aware of what constitutes inappropriate behavior since the #MeToo movement, and is therefore more likely to call it out.
“I mean, in the three years since the #MeToo movement broke out, we know what the rules are, and it’s so irritating for so many women to see this kind of behavior persist,” Lipman said.
New York Attorney General Letitia James opened an investigation into Cuomo Monday, as calls for him to step down from within his own party have grown.
U.S. Representative Kathleen Rice, D-Long Island, became the first Democrat to call on Cuomo to resign Monday night through TwitterSix Democratic state legislatures from the New York State Senate and Assembly have one pronunciation Tuesday and called for Cuomo to be impeached.