My sexual harassment case against Madigan’s camp shows truth can prevail
IllinoisHouse Speaker Michael Madigan’s closest confidant arranged secret payments totaling more than $30,000 to the man who sexually harassedme for months, orchestrating checks cut quietly aftermy harasser was fired because I came forward.
“These men are sticking their necks out knowing fullwell if it goes public before you are exonerated they will get the full blast fromthe ‘MeToo’movement. So, please honor the confidentiality,” MikeMcClain wrote tomy harasser, Kevin Quinn. McClain is the lobbyist recently indicted on bribery charges in the growing Commonwealth Edison corruption scandal that swirls at the highest levels of government in Illinois.
The indictments ofMcClain and three others suggest federal prosecutors have crackedMadigan’s inner circle, though the speaker has not been charged with any crime and has repeatedly denied anywrongdoing.
I suedMadigan’s organizations in 2018 for retaliating againstme after I reportedmy experience of being sexually harassed by one of his top aides. That lawsuitwas settled one year ago, but the effort to rebuildmy life and the fight for justice both continue.
I amoften asked if I regret coming forward because the experience derailedmy career. My answer is no. The day I chose the truth is the day I moved forward.
To say the experience has been traumaticwould be an understatement. One ofmy former bosses called some ofmy male colleagues to try and dig up dirt onme. My harasser wrote a 14-page statement and released it to the media in an effort to discredit me. One ofmy former colleagues even attempted to frame me for blackmail in a legislative inspector general report.
I could tell you about howdifficult it has been and continues to be, or about the immense and unyielding pain of being betrayed by people I once held dear. Instead, Iwant to tell youwhy coming forwardwasworth it.
Speaking out isn’t for everyone. I didn’twant it formyself.
But I knewmy story could have impact because of who it involved, and I knew the pain I could try to prevent for others. I knew that sweeping legislative changes regarding sexual misconduct in theworkplacewould have to be made in Illinois, and I knew it could help prevent a situation like mine fromever happening again. Lastly, I knewmy storywould expose many powerful people in Illinois for who they are. These things all happened— that’s howpowerful the truth is.
I neverwould have been the same if Ihad keptmy story a secret. Reporting my harassment and the retaliation I endured is what gaveme the ability to begin tomove forward and rebuild. My path to closurewas through accountability.
their experience in their ownway, but to all survivors of sexual misconduct, I say:
I don’t knowyour name and I don’t need to. I just need you to knowthat you are not alone. I don’t even know exactly what happened to you or when, but I knowyou didn’t deserve it.
Iwrite to you because, althoughwe might never meet, we are united in our pain. I once thought I lostmyself, that someone had taken a part of me that I would never have again. I amnot the only person who has felt thisway— I knowthis because people tellme all the time. Somany have reached out to me because they see their stories in mine. When they reach out, they have no idea that their solidarity is as comforting for me as it is for them.
While I will never knowthe exact pain you have endured, I admire your strength to persevere through your journey while carrying a trauma that was forced onto you. You don’t need to carry this trauma alone. I amwith you. And, as I learned through this process, so are many others.
Every victim handles
You deserve to knowitwas not your fault. You deserve to knowthat you are worth more.
It doesn’t matter what youwere wearing, and it doesn’t matter if your friendlinesswas being perceived as flirtatious. You did not choose this. A piece of your identitywas stolen from you, and there is nothing you could have done to prevent it.
Maybe no one will ever truly take responsibility. Maybe no one will ever truly be held accountable and maybe justice will never truly be served for many of us— but if you have experienced sexual misconduct, you deserve to knowthat there are many people out there whowon’t stop fighting for you.
It’s evident that the moral rot that allowedmy harassment to occur and go unpunished untilmy storywas becoming public is pervasive across our state and society. But, ifmy story is any comfort, knowthat the money and power that protect men likeKevin Quinn and MikeMcClain can be defeated by the truth.
Whenwe stand united, we can fight to ensure that sexual misconduct will one day end for everyone.