Why Women (and Men) Are Wearing Black to Trump's State of the Union Speech

When President Trump took the stage for Tuesday night’s State of the Union address, he looked out on a sea of black. Men and women in Congress stuck to the dark dress code to stand in solidarity with survivors of sexual harassment, joining parts with Hollywood’s Time’s Up movement, and the results were impressive.

Earlier this month California Democrat and U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier put out the call to action, asking representatives from both sides of the aisle to join together in black. “This is a culture change that is sweeping the country, and Congress is embracing it,” Speier told HuffPost.

Minority Leaders in Black SOTU - Lead
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In 2017, the politician shared her own story of sexual harassment, saying that a staffer on Capitol Hill “held my face, kissed me, and stuck his tongue in my mouth.”

It’s important to note that President Trump has been accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women. He has denied all reports.

On Tuesday night, members of the Senate and the House of Representatives showed their support for ending sexual harassment, dressing in black for the occasion. But there were a few noticeably absent from the audience.

Several Democratic lawmakers, plus Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, announced ahead of time that they would be boycotting Trump’s first State of the Union after several comments made by the president, including his alleged remark about “shithole” nations.

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