A former Miss America who is running for Illinois attorney general once said that many victims of sexual harassment "become very promiscuous" and that young people who are called names such as "whore" or "slut" think: "That's what I want to be."
Republican Erika Harold is stressing her experience as an anti-bullying advocate as she seeks the job of Illinois' top legal officer, running campaign ads and giving speeches to students about her own painful experiences. The topic also was her platform as the 2003 Miss America, a title that she says helped pay her way through Harvard Law School.
Shortly after winning the crown in September 2002, Harold spoke at a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, where she said she wanted her platform to be sexual abstinence — the platform she used to become Miss Illinois — but that pageant officials rejected it and asked her to speak about youth violence and bullying instead. She told reporters she saw a connection between the two.
FILE - In this Sept. 19, 2003 file photo then Miss America Erika Harold waves during the 2003 Miss America boardwalk parade in Atlantic City, N.J. Harold a Republican, now running for Illinois attorney general once said many victims of sexual harassment "become very promiscuous" and that young people who are called names like "whore" or "slut" think: "that's what I want to be." Harold is stressing her experience as an anti-bullying advocate as she seeks the job of Illinois' top legal officer. She made the comments after winning the 2003 Miss America pageant, and her campaign stood by them Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2018. ( AP PhotoBrian Branch-Price File)
"I think that if a young person is engaged in a promiscuous lifestyle, it makes them vulnerable to other risk factors, so I definitely see a tie-in there," she said, according to an article in The Washington Times .
"Many victims of sexual harassment believe what is said about them, and they become very promiscuous. When they're called a whore, when they're called a slut, they think, 'That's what I want to be,' and so they engage in a pattern of self-destruction that can be very detrimental to their lives."
Harold, then 22, also said she was harassed, bullied and called names as a high school student but that she "took the opposite approach" rather than "the route of being promiscuous" and was fortunate to have parents and a religious community that supported her.
Harold, now 38, faces Democratic state Sen. Kwame Raoul for the seat vacated by Democratic Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who is stepping down after four terms.
Neena Chaudhry, general counsel at the National Women's Law Center, said there is no evidence that harassment causes "many" victims to become "promiscuous." She called Harold's statement "egregious" — in 2002 or today — and said it "feeds into damaging stereotypes."
"My deep concern is this is the kind of blaming and shaming that keeps young people from coming forward and reporting sexual harassment and sexual violence," she said. "I think (the comment) is egregious whenever it's uttered, and by whomever they're uttered."
Harold's campaign stood by the remarks in a statement Wednesday and said she didn't intend to blame victims.
"Erika was clearly referring to the labels bullies and harassers use on their victims and how it may negatively impact victims' lives. She understands firsthand what victims of sexual harassment are going through because she's lived it herself," spokesman Aaron DeGroot said. "The fact is studies show that sexual harassment can cause anxiety, depression, negative body image and low self-esteem in some victims. That's why Erika has made it her life's mission to empower young people, combat bullying and prevent sexual harassment."
A 2013 study from researchers at the Boston University School of Education found that adolescent bullies and their victims reported engaging in more casual sex and sex under the influence with other people than did students who were not involved in bullying. The authors noted that the study could not conclude that bullying was the direct cause of that behavior.
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CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s parliament on Tuesday approved a measure that criminalizes a broad range of activities that can hinder navigation and commerce in the South American country, such as the seizure of oil tankers.
The bill — introduced, debated and approved within two days in the National Assembly — follows this month's seizures by U.S. forces of two tankers carrying Venezuelan oil in international waters. The seizures are the latest strategy in U.S. President Donald Trump's four-month pressure campaign on Venezuela's leader Nicolás Maduro.
The tankers are part of what the Trump administration has said is a fleet Venezuela uses to evade U.S. economic sanctions.
The unicameral assembly, which is controlled by Venezuela's ruling party, did not publish drafts on Tuesday nor the final version of the measure. But as read on the floor, the bill calls for fines and prison sentences of up to 20 years for anyone who promotes, requests, supports, finances or participates in “acts of piracy, blockades or other international illegal acts” against commercial entities operating with the South American country.
Venezuela's political opposition, including Nobel Peace laureate María Corina Machado, has expressed support for Trump's Venezuela policy, including the seizure of tankers. Machado and Trump have both repeatedly said that Maduro's days in power are numbered.
The bill, which now awaits Maduro’s signature, also instructs the executive branch to come up with “incentives and mechanisms for economic, commercial and other protections” for national or foreign entities doing business with Venezuela in the event of piracy activities, a maritime blockade or other unlawful acts.
The U.S. Coast Guard on Saturday seized a Panama-flagged vessel called Centuries that officials said was part of the fleet moving sanctioned cargo. With assistance from the U.S. Navy, it seized a rogue tanker called Skipper on Dec. 10. That ship was registered in Panama.
Trump, after that first seizure, said the U.S. would carry out a “blockade” of Venezuela. He later demanded that Venezuela return assets that it seized from U.S. oil companies years ago, justifying anew his announcement of the blockade against sanctioned oil tankers traveling to or from the South American country.
At an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council called by Venezuela, U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz on Tuesday stressed that sanctioned oil tankers “operate as the primary economic lifeline for Maduro and his illegitimate regime.”
“Maduro’s ability to sell Venezuela’s oil enables his fraudulent claim to power and his narco-terrorist activities,” Waltz said. “The United States will impose and enforce sanctions to the maximum extent to deprive Maduro of the resources he uses to fund Cartel de los Soles.”
Maduro was indicted in 2020 on narcoterrorism charges in the U.S. and accused of leading the Cartel de los Soles, which the Trump administration designated as a foreign terrorist organization last month. But the entity is not a cartel per se.
Venezuelans began using the term Cartel de los Soles in the 1990s to refer to high-ranking military officers who had grown rich from drug-running. As corruption expanded nationwide, its use loosely expanded to police and government officials as well as activities like illegal mining and fuel trafficking.
At Tuesday's meeting, Venezuela’s U.N. Ambassador Samuel Moncada accused the U.S. of acting “outside international law” and its own domestic laws, by demanding that Venezuelans vacate the country and hand it over to the Trump administration, including all its oil fields.
“What right does the United States government have to appropriate, to date, almost 4 million barrels of Venezuelan oil?” Moncada asked, referring to the cargo of the two seized tankers. “This alleged naval blockade is essentially a military act aimed at laying siege to the Venezuelan nation, degrading its economic and military apparatus, weakening its social and political cohesion, and causing internal chaos to facilitate aggression by external forces.”
Many countries expressed concern about violations of international maritime law and adhering to the United Nations Charter, which requires all 193 member nations to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of every other country. The United States’ actions were supported by a few countries, including Panama and Argentina.
Associated Press writer Edith Lederer in New York contributed to this report.
Lawmaker Giuseppe Alessandrello gives a speech during an extraordinary session at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Evana, an oil tanker, is docked at El Palito port in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
