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Originally Posted by wittynickname
Betsy DeVos has made it so that if a college student accuses someone of rape/assault--his or her sexual history can be called into question, his or her name can be dragged through the mud. Beyond just reliving the trauma, victims are put on trial themselves.
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I agree with almost everything you post, but I have to disagree with you here. I hate that victims of sexual assault have to relive the trauma...I've had to do it myself, but sometimes it has to happen to ensure due process and real justice, as it would be with any other type of crime.
This is a great article from a woman I hugely respect, Christina Hoff Summers. In it she details a different take on Title IX and the "Dear Colleague" letter sent out by Russlyn Ali in 2011 that laid out guidelines/mandates on how to deal with sexual misconduct on campus:
http://www.chronicle.com/article/Pro...cess-in/241137
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The letter advised them (Campuses) to determine guilt in sexual-assault cases by the lowest standard possible — a preponderance of evidence — and to "minimize the burden on the complainant." It said nothing about the rights of the accused.
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As I said, I believe due process is so important in these cases, regardless of whether it's painful for the victim to relive the experience. I don't think the victim should have their past and reputation exploited. However, it turns into a grey area when it literally comes down to he said/she said. Combine that with campuses that are wary of losing their federal funding, and situations like this occur:
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Fearing Title IX investigations and loss of federal funding, many colleges set up extrajudicial sex courts, where defendants could be found guilty of a crime even if there was a 49.9 percent chance that they were innocent. At last count, more than 150 lawsuits have been filed since 2011 by students (mostly young men) alleging unfair treatment in a campus sexual-assault proceeding.
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To me, those numbers are unacceptable, and honestly it does real victims no favors either. While I disagree with Betsy DeVos in just about every other aspect, I think this is one issue that she got right. This has to be revisited because as much as people hate to admit it, the accused have rights too. While they should never trump the rights of an alleged victim, they should still be entitled to due process.
If anyone wants to read the actual 2011 "Dear Colleagues" letter in full, here it is:
https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/li...gue-201104.pdf