Students at Dartmouth College have filed a federal complaint alleging that the school charged them with violating the student code of conduct for staging a protest against sexual assault.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt least two thirds of the protesters have now received
\ndisciplinary letters, and it seems random \u2014 some people who were
\nfeatured prominently in the protest didn\u2019t, and others did,\u201d<\/i>
\nKarenina Rojas, one of the protesters and a college senior, told
\nThinkProgress.<\/p>\n
On\u00a0April 19, a group of sexual violence prevention activists
\nheld a rally in which they accused the school of underreporting
\ncases of sexual assault, racism and homophobia. A student group
\ncalled Real Talk Dartmouth interrupted an event called
\nDimensions, which is held annually to attract prospective
\nstudents. One student was carrying a sign that stated, \u201cI Was
\nCalled A \u2018Fag\u2019 In My Freshman Dorm\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were protesting sexual assault on this campus, and the
\nadministration\u2019s failure to respond to homophobia and racism on
\ncampus,\u201d<\/i> Nastassja Schmiedt, a sophomore at Dartmouth, told
\nThe Huffington Post. \u201cWe were informally informing the college
\nof civil rights violations.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
School officials tried to prevent the protesters from entering
\nthe area where the event was held, but the students violated the
\norders and disrupted it anyway, giving prospective students a
\nglimpse of sexual assault and homophobia on campus.<\/p>\n
Some of the protesters subsequently received rape and death
\nthreats from other students. When these threats were reported to
\nthe school, Dartmouth College officials said that the \u2018public
\ndisruption\u2019 caused by the protesters was equally as serious as
\nthe rape threats they received thereafter.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t understand it at all because not following directions
\nseems like something incredibly benign,\u201d<\/i> Rojas told the
\ncampus newspaper, The Dartmouth.<\/p>\n
This week, at least 10 students who were involved in the protest
\nreceived letters informing them that they may have violated the
\nschool\u2019s code of conduct for their refusal to follow college
\nofficials\u2019 instructions to avoid the 1953 Commons, the dining
\nhall where the event for prospective students was held.<\/p>\n
A group of students, seven of which received letters from the
\nadministration\u2019s Judicial Affairs Office, have now filed a
\nfederal Clery Act complaint against Dartmouth, claiming that the
\nschool is retaliating against them. The complaint, which has been
\nsent to the US Department of Education, includes testimonies from
\nmore than 30 students and alumni, which claim that the
\nadministration is creating a hostile environment by failing to
\naddress cases of sexual assault, racism and homophobia.<\/p>\n
\u201cDartmouth is a business, and it runs like a business selling
\nits prestige,\u201d<\/i> Anna Winham, a college junior, told the campus
\nnewspaper. \u201cIts prestige can be threatened by lawsuits
\nagainst it such as the Clery Act complaint against it. It\u2019s a way
\nto force Dartmouth\u2019s hand and make it change.\u201d\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n
Rojas told ThinkProgress that the administration\u2019s actions
\nagainst the protesters are more drastic than previous responses
\nto student uprisings.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was a member of Occupy Dartmouth, and we occupied the
\nstudent center for months\u2026 We definitely failed to comply with
\ndirections, and we were never disciplined like this,\u201d<\/i> Rojas
\nsaid, adding that the United Students Against Sweatshops group
\nwas never drastically punished either.<\/p>\n
In the end, the sophomore said she wants Dartmouth to address the
\nissue of sexual assault in the same way that it is addressing the
\nissue of violating school officials\u2019 orders to avoid disrupting
\nan event.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we broke a rule, we should be punished \u2014 but we ask the
\nadministration to also punish serial rapists,<\/i>\u201d Rojas said.
\n\u201cThe fact is that Dartmouth is punishing protesters who are
\nvery visible, but won\u2019t punish students who commit assaults.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n