‘Keep your legs closed.’ Texas candidate tells teen girls to not ‘taint’ themselves, they say

A Houston mayoral candidate’s speech at a Youth Advocacy Summit in Texas on Friday made several teenage attendees of the event uncomfortable, KPRC reported.

According to a news release from OCA - Asian Pacific American Advocates, candidate Dwight Boykins was invited to the organization’s summit for a discussion on issues important to area high school students, but Boykins deviated from the program.

“He was telling us we should keep our legs closed, that we shouldn’t taint ourselves,” a 16-year-old attendee said, according to KTRK. “In a way, saying that we should stay pure because otherwise, in the future, other men won’t want us.”

In a video posted to Twitter, Boykins pulls a young woman from the audience to illustrate his point saying, “I’m going to lie and tell her how much I love her and how beautiful she is, how sweet she is, because I’m running game. And once we do something, he finds out, he isn’t going to want to marry her.”

An apology was posted to Boykins’ Facebook page, stating “My words were [meant] to inspire and I deeply regret the extent to which they caused anyone hurt or discomfort. That was never my intention, and to anyone who may have taken offense by what I said, I apologize.”

His remarks sparked the hashtag #BoycottBoykins, where students and supporters have shared their disapproval of Boykins’ comments on Twitter.

“Telling teenage girls to keep their legs closed or else no man will want them doesn’t ‘inspire’ a [damn] thing,” one user wrote.

“...it’s extremely inappropriate and downright horrendous that someone, especially a person in power that’s running for another (higher) elected position, would make such degrading and dehumanizing remarks towards young female students,” another wrote.

In a news release, OCA - Asian Pacific American Advocates said the organization notified authorities as well as parents and guardians of the students in attendance, stating “We do not and will not tolerate inappropriate behavior at our events regardless of whom the perpetrator might be. The safety and well-being of our young advocates are our paramount concern.”

This story was originally published June 30, 2019 at 11:48 AM.