Content warning: This article contains discussion of sexual violence.

For the past month, news of the seven Chi Phi fraternity men implicated in the alleged 2024 sexual assault of Jane Doe at Cornell University has outraged people across the country. This case has triggered a wave of reflection on college campuses nationwide, with many asking why sexual assault continues to be an issue in university living. 

While it is unrealistic for us to propose society-wide solutions to this social problem, we encourage ongoing conversations about relationship and sexual violence (RSV) on college campuses and in society as a whole. At a time when sexual assault and rape is pervasive across college campuses, the Student Life editorial board strongly urges WashU administrators and students to take active steps toward RSV awareness and prevention on campus.

The Student Life editorial board stands with Jane Doe. In doing so, we ask WashU’s administration to take a look at the public backlash Cornell now faces and WashU’s own practices when confronting allegations of sexual harassment and assault.

The purpose of our editorial board statements is to speak on issues that affect the WashU community. Despite the fact that this assault took place at Cornell, RSV is a tragic reality of college life and society as a whole. Many of us on the editorial board were first-years when Nobel Prize winner and former Olin school professor Philip Dybvig was still teaching classes. Associate Professor of Chemistry Jonathan Barnes was accused of “inappropriately touching” students in 2024. Just recently, a former WashU Medicine neurosurgeon was convicted of sexual assault in Scotland. These instances prove that RSV is an undeniable issue at WashU, and its prevention requires deliberate effort.

There are numerous RSV resources on campus, such as the Rape and Sexual Violence Prevention Center (RSVP), the Sexual Assault & Rape Anonymous Helpline (SARAH), and the Title IX office. We are grateful that these resources are available to students; but we cannot refer students to the sexual assault prevention and aids available at WashU without first acknowledging the ways that those resources, specifically the Title IX office, have failed to fully support survivors of assault.

Students have lamented that Title IX is not transparent enough and doesn’t offer the legal backing that many survivors need. We urge WashU administration to investigate these grievances and institute changes in Title IX processes that would allow for survivors to feel properly supported.

Just last week, Vice Chancellor for Student Success Anna Gonzalez responded to a student’s question about RSV prevention at WashU by saying, “What are you all doing to help educate your peers to make sure that you are taking care of one another, [being] active bystanders, and also supporting those who have been victimized, but also preventing this from happening as well?” By placing responsibility on individual students to create a university environment where violence does not happen, WashU administrators shirk responsibility and frame sexual violence as an issue which can be resolved by individual action. Sexual assault prevention cannot truly happen at WashU without administrative change. 

That said, the truth in Gonzalez’s statement is that, in addition to more robust campus support resources, students must also take an active role in changing the culture here on campus. This involves having conversations about RSV in all spaces and organizations across campus, not just those dedicated to discussing sexual violence. 

Because of the prevalence of sexual assault in Greek life, fraternity culture has taken center stage in the national discussion about the Cornell 7 case. It has been the focus of discourse about sexual assault on college campuses, including our own. Greek organizations should take accountability for their role in sexual assault, and in recent years, WashU fraternities have began the process of addressing their histories of RSV.

Some WashU Greek chapters have hosted teach-ins led by Leaders in Interpersonal Violence Education WashU (or L.I.V.E.) with their members about sexual assault and prevention, specifically within the context of parties and other events. We support these efforts and hope to see continued measures toward sexual assault prevention in the years to come. 

RSV is a nuanced issue, and we don’t have the answers — neither do we think that we should. If anything, the situation at Cornell over this past month has shown all of us how our discussions need to acknowledge the potential ambiguity in RSV despite all of our tendencies to reach for clear-cut solutions. 

We do know, however, that more outreach, peer-to-peer education, improvement to Title IX enforcement, and campus-wide conversations about RSV are always better than less. 

Staff editorials reflect the opinion of the majority of our editorial board members. The editorial board operates independently of our newsroom and includes members of staff.

Dion Hines | Managing Forum Editor

Bea Augustine | Design Editor

Marceline Lee | Illustration Editor

Hannah La Porte | Managing Scene Editor

Amelia Spencer | Special Issues Editor

Apurva Ganti | Head of Training and Recruitment

Maddie Morgan | Forum Editor

Campbell Crum | DEI Editor