Last edited Fri Jan 16, 2015, 12:06 AM - Edit history (1)
As an impact litigator, I filed a complaint against Harvard Law School in order to provoke change not only at Harvard but also at all colleges and universities across the country. That's why, in 2010, I sent the complaint (along with my Princeton case) to the Office for Civil Rights headquarters in Washington, D.C., and asked them to issue some form of "global guidance." I explained that problems at both schools were systemic in higher education and urged them to release new guidance that would clarify the law and apply to all schools nationwide. I obtained letters of support for my request from two influential organizations: The National Center for Higher Education Risk Management and Security on Campus.
The Office for Civil Rights agreed with my request for global guidance and in April 2011 it issued a "Dear Colleague Letter" to school administrators providing new clarity about Title IX compliance standards. The letter made clear that my complaints about Harvard and Princeton were correct, and that both schools were substantially noncompliant.
Thereafter, many other schools were investigated and forced to change their policies. The fact that Harvard and Princeton were on the hot seat helped to liberate victims to speak out, especially victims from Ivy League and elite schools where silence was particularly problematic because victims disproportionately feared career-related and other consequences of complaining.
Without widespread publicity and a deep public appreciation for how and why we've seen so much public attention to the need for reforms since 2010, the impact of the decision against Harvard Law School and the value of the tactics I used to provoke national change will have only limited value on the effectiveness of future efforts to hold schools accountable.
(emphasis mine)
I applaud Ms. Murphy on the progress she has achieved, but I can still see the rape apologists and rape deniers on campuses across the nation digging in their heels and working much harder to make her--and all this publicity--go away than to assure they are in compliance.
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