On Saturday (November 22), University of Virginia President Teresa Sullivan suspended all campus Greek life following an account of a brutal gang rape that allegedly happened on the campus in 2012.
Though temporary — fraternities and sororities will allegedly be able to return to normalcy on January 9th, before the spring semester begins — the ban has been placed into effect in order to address and better equip the school when occurrences such as was described in a report from Rolling Stone on November 19.
In it, the magazine described the harrowing tale of a campus freshman named Jackie who was allegedly brutally assaulted by seven men at a frat house party. Following her attempts to report the story to university officials, Jackie was met with gruff silence and a system seemingly pre-determined to rebuff her at every turn. And a follow-up story that Rolling Stone published on Friday (November 21) suggested that there were additional victims were involved.
In a letter addressed to the campus, Sullivan explained her thought process behind the ban — one that only came about after more than 1,000 students and faculty members sent a letter to the president on Friday evening calling for the suspension.
“The wrongs described in Rolling Stone are appalling and have caused all of us to reexamine our responsibility to this community,” she wrote on the university’s website. “In the intervening period we will assemble groups of students, faculty, alumni, and other concerned parties to discuss our next steps in preventing sexual assault and sexual violence on Grounds.”
The report in question documents not only a brutal gang rape, but also mounting dissatisfaction amongst the UVA population in regards to the school’s inadequate response to victims from university officials over the years. The response from students was almost immediate, causing several fraternities on campus to make the decision on their own to suspend social activities over the weekend.
Not to say everyone agrees with the president: student response has ranged from general disappointment to extreme dissatisfaction and in some cases, anger. As is the case with any polarizing event such as this, some feel as though the president has not gone far enough, while others believe the punishment is too harsh.
Still, the UVA campus and its administration are taking things seriously now, even calling on the local police to re-investigate the rape in question and the university’s response at the time.
“Meaningful change is necessary, and we can lead that change for all universities,” Sullivan posited. “We can demand that incidents like those described in Rolling Stone never happen and that if they do, the responsible are held accountable to the law. This will require institutional change, cultural change, and legislative change, and it will not be easy.”
What do you think? Was this the right decision for the school? Will shutting down Greek Life help positive change? Let us know in the comments.
If you or someone you know has been affected by sexual violence, call the 24-hour National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (1-800-656-4673), or visit Rainn.org.
UVA Temporarily Suspends All Greek Life Following Rolling Stone Gang Rape Allegations
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