New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal announced Monday that the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights and the New Jersey Coalition Against Sexual Assault will jointly host three public hearings on sexual harassment.

Grewal said the hearings are to develop a better understanding on how to combat sexual harassment in the workplaces, in housing, and in places of public accommodation.

The hearings are scheduled to take place:

• Sept. 11, 2019, at the Paramount Theatre in Asbury Park, from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.;
• Sept. 24, 2019, at the Hackensack Performing Arts Center in Hackensack, from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.; and
• Sept. 25, 2019, at the All Wars Memorial Building in Atlantic City, from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Experts will speak at the events, and members of the public also will be invited to speak, the release said.

Anna María Farías, the assistant secretary for fair housing and equal opportunity at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, will deliver opening remarks at the Sept. 11 hearing. And Grewal is to deliver opening remarks at the Sept. 24 hearing.

"Sexual harassment has no place in the workplace, in housing, or anywhere else," Grewal said in a statement. "But, regrettably, in 2019, sexual harassment still remains all too common. I hope that the hearings … will provide an opportunity for frank discussion about the problem and how we can best address it, as individuals and as members of our communities."

Organizers say the public hearings aim to document why action is needed to combat sexual harassment, with a final report to result from recommendations to be co-written by DCR, NJCASA, and the Rutgers Law School International Human Rights Clinic.

"Sexual harassment is ubiquitous—it affects people regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, age, immigration status, or disability," said Division on Civil Rights Director Rachel Wainer Apter in a statement. "And silence is a huge part of the problem. The purpose of these hearings is to end the silence—to allow victims to come forward to share their stories and to allow experts to share what we can do in terms of law and policy, to prevent and address sexual harassment."

Added Anna Martinez, director of the Division on Women in the Department of Children and Families: "These hearings are about sustaining awareness, exploring solutions and advancing recommendations that promote equity and justice for New Jersey residents."