By: James Daniel
Sex crimes at a prestigious Los Angeles school, including rapes and sexual assaults were covered up and not taken seriously by the college's staff. On one occasion a student who was found responsible for raping a woman was given the punishment of writing a five-page book report. The federal complaint, which runs to 250 pages, against the Female Occidental College states that the school maintained a hostile environment when it came to sexual assault victims. Attorney Gloria Allred said the complaint outlines violations of Title IX, which bars sex discrimination at schools.
A group 37 women associated with the school consisting of both past and present students along with some professors, signed the complaint on Thursday. It has since been filed with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights. They allege the college discouraged the reporting of sex crimes, proceeding with criminal action against the perpetrators and covered up rapes. In the complaint, Allred alleges that 37 students were 'raped, sexually assaulted, battered, harassed or retaliated against for speaking out against sexual violence.'
'I've seen some of the outputs of these so-called 'educational sanctions' like book reports and apology letters and they're abysmal,' told Danielle Dirks to the Huffington Post. Dirks is a sociology professor who specializes in crime and punishment who also signed the complaint. 'The fact that Occidental has invited rapists back to campus and even told survivors not to worry because 'he's reformed now' after these types of inadequate sanctions is an abomination.'
A previous complaint was made against the school under the Clery Act alleging the school under-reports campus sexual assaults, discourages victims from reporting attacks and fails to issue timely crime reports. Jim Tranquada, the college director of communications responded: 'Sexual assault on college campuses is a nationwide problem, from which Occidental College regrettably is not exempt. We take this issue very seriously, and will not tolerate sexual misconduct.' 'We readily acknowledge that Oxy has more work to do, and are vigilantly ensuring our continual progress,' Tranquada said.
The women who filed the complaint have been trying to encourage the college to improve their sexual assault policies for six years. Professor Dirks has said that when she became vocal about Oxy's sexual violence policies, administrators accused her of 'actively seeking to embarrass the college.' Speaking to the LA Times, Senior Carly Mee said she was raped as a freshman. She said she reported the incident to the college but did not report it to police. A university panel found the alleged perpetrator responsible and initially expelled him. He then appealed and will now be able to re-enroll after she graduates in May.
Los Angeles police say they have investigated three rape cases involving Occidental College students in the last three years, far fewer than current and former students outline in their civil rights complaint. The college does appear to be taking steps to redress their policies towards sexual violence and has hired a law firm to conduct a review. Occidental is a private college with an annual tuition around $60,000. President Barack Obama attended Occidental College for two years as an undergrad.
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CA student raped at Occidental college was punished by being made to write 5 pg book report
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