L. Douglas Wilder Accused of Sexual Harassment of Student

Woman says former Virginia governor kissed her without her consent
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 28, 2019 7:00 PM CDT
Student Accuses Political Pioneer of Sexual Harassment
L. Douglas Wilder is accused of sexual harassment.   (Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal via AP)

A college student says L. Douglas Wilder, former governor of Virginia and the first black person elected governor of any state, sexually harassed her in 2017. Sydney Black says Wilder kissed her without her consent, told her she could live at his house, and offered to take her on foreign trips and pay for law school for her, the Washington Post reports. Black, 22, was an office assistant at the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at the time, at Virginia Commonwealth University. She made complaints to the university and police; VCU has told her it's investigating. Black filed the report nearly two years after the incident. "I have been hesitant to report this incident because I was afraid of the power this individual possessed over my career and education," she said in an email to VCU. The university would not discuss the case with the Post, citing privacy laws. (Virginia's current lieutenant governor is accused of sexual assault.)

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