Sexual assault, harassment and other vulgarities have rocked Hollywood, scarred Silicon Valley and darkened media offices from New York to Washington. But the sexual harassment scandal surrounding Mr. Conyers, the longest serving member of the House, has highlighted schisms that are as much about generations as they are about gender.

A former senior Capitol Hill aide with a lengthy career in the halls of Congress tells Fox News that during her long tenure there, male members would often “grade” female aides on their appearance and demeanor on the floor. There was no written scorecard. But the former aide said that a number of male members would often comment on the hair, attire and facial countenance of female aides. The aide says lawmakers would often remark them they’d be prettier if they’d smile, for example. She also said lawmakers would occasionally tell female aides how to “improve” their “grades.”

Male-dominated organizations with fewer women overall — or few women in leadership roles — are likelier to enable an environment where sexual harassment can flourish, although a gender-balanced or majority-female workplace isn’t guaranteed to be free of sexual harassment either. A 2008 study found that women are less likely to experience certain kinds of harassment (such as sexually oriented jokes, overly personal communications, sexual solicitation or forced sexual contact) in workplaces where they’re in the majority, but they still experienced harassment in the form of sexist but nonsexual comments.

There are 104 female lawmakers on Capitol Hill, and while that figure is the highest ever, it’s still only about 19 percent of members. The numbers are even worse for the GOP: The 27 Republican women in Congress comprise only 5 percent of lawmakers, and four of them are retiring after this session.

“So often, we are discredited for being brown or black, looking too young or too old, or having strong opinions. I appreciate that Congressman Young apologized and I want to remind women of color out there to stand your ground and don’t ever be afraid to speak up.”