Andrew Cuomo, the Governor of New York, has been in and out of the news lately. It started back in February 2020, when Cuomo issued a controversial policy that ultimately led to his downfall. The policy said that nursing homes couldn’t deny patients coming from the hospital admission based on a COVID-19 diagnosis.

Cuomo hadn’t spoken to any big nursing homes about this policy, and nursing home workers weren’t even aware of the policy beforehand. He was aware of the vulnerability of the nursing home patients, yet he proceeded with his plan.

Then he made a bigger mistake: hiding data. The Cuomo administration could only hide the numbers of the actual deaths in nursing homes for so long, and in January, all hell broke loose. The Democratic state attorney general published a statement saying that the administration undercounted nursing home deaths by more than 50%.

Now, Cuomo’s done something to bring his career to an end: three women have come forward saying that Cuomo sexually harassed them. The accusations range from unwanted kissing to asking an employee about her sex life to soliciting a former aide to play “strip poker.” The responses to these allegations have been downright awful; some have suggested that it’s not a big deal and others saw it as just fun flirting. It’s disgusting how normalized behavior like this has become.

Sexual harassment has a huge effect on peoples’ mental health. It may be just a joke to some, but it can cause anxiety, depression and diminished self-esteem for victims. Sexual harassment at workplaces has become a huge issue. It affects people’s daily lives and how they work.

Anna Ruch, Lindsey Boylan and Charlotte Bennett have come forward over the past month with allegations against Cuomo. The women accused the governor of unwanted advances from December 2016 through June 2020. Boylan tweeted: “Yes [Cuomo] sexually harassed me for years. Many saw it, and watched.” Cuomo responded by saying her accusation was false. Boylan, who previously served as New York’s Deputy Secretary for Economic Development and as a special adviser to the governor, eventually resigned in September.

In November, Bennet left her office as well; Cuomo had asked various questions about her sex life. Ruch, who did not work with Cuomo, explained an incident where Cuomo put her hands on her back and asked to kiss her.

Two women had to resign from their jobs: when is enough going to be enough? The women had not wanted to resign, but the level of discomfort left them with no other option. If Cuomo is not punished for these actions, it will send a message that this type of behavior is okay. Although it’s not rape, it can leave some of the same effects. So, after three accusations and a history of lies, will the day come when Cuomo is removed from his position? We can only hope.