POINT: Campuses, not the government, should be in charge of sexual assault
One in five women will experience sexual assault at some point in her college career, most during their freshman or sophomore years. And as sexual assault becomes one of the most rapidly growing crimes in America and universities repeatedly show ambivalence toward rape victims, the national government has become involved. However, given the lack of progress seen in federal investigations, there should be a re-examination of how to deal with the sexual assault epidemic.
In recent years, the federal government has tightened the reins on how to deal with campus sexual assault, launching extensive investigations. The Office for Civil Rights has been quick to condemn the universities that only three years ago were praised for creating “a culture that is safe to students.” On top of that, Not Alone, a governmental task force, aims to incite action in bystanders. On the surface, it might seem like the government is obliterating rape culture, but the reality is far from it.
Currently, the responsibilities between campus and federal dealings of sexual assault are messily delineated. Sexual assault prevention typically falls under the duties of a college administration, but other sensitive topics, such as reporting, police involvement and media publicity, are no man’s land. Additionally, the requirements of how to clearly state sexual assault violations campus policies vary from school to school.
Due to these muddled processes at institutions throughout the nation, many victims have spoken out about how their schools have rejected or mishandled cases based on Title IX guidelines. Moreover, the federally enforced process mandates that campuses use a lowered evidentiary standard during their rape trials, in which the student judiciary government would use a “more likely than not” instead of the “beyond a reasonable doubt” margin to indict the accused. This has caused instances in which the accused have maintained their innocence. Either way, the actual rapists are getting away unscathed without due punishment.
Coupled with the fact that a small fraction — only 5 percent — of victims come forward and report rape, the government should fracture their responsibilities among campuses. This way, college administrations can take a more directive, victim-first approach in championing the issue. For the government, campus sexual assault is just another agenda that must be completed; for the university, it’s an issue that plagues the student body.
The government should outline unambiguous responsibilities for the university and allow them to take over in supervised investigations of sexual assault cases. Ultimately, these measures make up for the gaps currently in place.
It’s impossible not to recognize the pervasive problem campus sexual assault presents. Though the government has attempted to handle this job, many cases get swept under the rug or the wrong people have been accused. Thus, if colleges were afforded more authority in this arena, it would give the victims an opportunity to feel supported. One in five is just too many.
Danni Wang is a junior majoring in psychology. She is also the lifestyle editor of the Daily Trojan. “Point/Counterpoint” runs Mondays.