Woman tells of sexual harassment

It was a dream job that turned into a nightmare.

Cal State Long Beach student Fionna Davis was hired last year as an intern, a position helping her make connections. But Davis learned about more than paperwork -- she learned about sexual harassment.

Davis shared her experiences at a discussion about sexual harassment Tuesday in the Women's Resource Center.

"If I hadn't felt empowered to come here -- I wouldn't have been able to go on," Davis said.

During her internship interview, the interviewers closed the office door. She thought they were trying to ease her nerves. But then they made internship jokes referring to the infamous intern Monica Lewinsky.

She paid no attention to these comments and started work for that law enforcement agency.

Davis worked closely with a married sex-crime agent. He would tell her that she needed a married man and that he had an unfulfilled sex life and cheated on his wife.

"The art of manipulation was all his," Davis said.

She said she felt lucky to have the internship. But this agent constantly made lewd comments to her. Soon, another agent did the same.

The sexual harassment affected Davis both mentally and physically. She called in sick to work and was messing up in school. She had headaches and intestinal problems and bouts of crying.

Davis' professor, who helped her get the job, sometimes asked her about the internship. Davis told him that everything was fine.

"I tried to be self-reliant," Davis said. "I couldn't tell my teacher."

She felt that if she showed weakness, she might not make it in the real world.

She did not want to quit the internship because she would lose the class credit for it. But she felt as if she would lose her mind.

"I was physically and emotionally exhausted," she said. "I thought that no one would believe me."

Davis then went to the Women's Resource Center to get advice.

Marcela Chavez, the center's director, encouraged her to discuss the problem with her professor, who then got her a new internship. He urged her to write a letter to the authorities about the behavior of the two agents. Her professor also wrote letters on Davis' behalf.

But after an investigation, her case was dismissed due to insufficient evidence.