Unwanted touching, late-night texts: Women at Texas Capitol describe culture of harassment

AUSTIN, Texas – A forced kiss by a male colleague. A catcall by a state trooper assigned to guard the Capitol. Late-night texts. A work meeting hijacked by a male legislative staffer: You are my ideal woman, he told his female interlocutor.

The episodes illustrate what many women say is the biggest open secret at the Texas Capitol: That a culture of harassment persists despite repeated efforts to stamp it out.