A lot of us were disappointed in our school on Wednesday night. The story of Angie Epiphano leaves us with the idea that saving face is more important to our college than the well being of a student. We have seen Amherst as a utopia; a bubble of safety inhabited by the intellectually elite. Angie’s story shattered that image.
In the year 2012, it is unacceptable for a rapist to be allowed to graduate from an elite school while the victim is told to take time off. Shouldn’t Amherst, a school whose mission is to be accessible to everyone, regardless of their economic background, race, or sexuality, be a place where such old-fashioned, backward, blatant sexism is not tolerated? Shouldn’t a school that prides itself on its support system for students be a place where people feel safe expressing their feelings?
It is true that these situations present the administration with a lot of challenges, but regardless it is clear that the administration has failed us when it comes to cases of sexual assault on campus. Students whom the administration knew to be serial rapists have been allowed to graduate, while the victims of these rapes are the ones who have been punished. Having been violated but having done nothing wrong themselves, victims have been asked to push the pause button on their lives and their educations to take time off until their rapists have graduated before returning to campus, or to tough it out and remain at Amherst feeling unsafe. When a victim finds herself waiting around for two years to return to her own school to finish her education, how can she help but start to blame herself and ask herself what she has done wrong? By asking victims to leave campus, isn’t self-blame for rape exactly what the school is encouraging?
“He graduated with honors.
I will not graduate from Amherst.”
Those lines are haunting. I want to be at a school where I feel both safe and proud to be a woman, but Amherst is the first place where I have begun to fear that my gender will be a handicap going forward. If the rape of a girl can be so minimalized at a top school like Amherst, what’s the real, hard, cruel world going to be like?
The reaction to Angie’s story has been strong, and thankfully it seems that the Amherst administration has realized that the school’s methods of dealing with sexual assault are unacceptably old-fashioned. The student body has received several emails about the school’s dedication to modifying its sexual misconduct and Title IX policies. I hope that the administration follows through, because even if covering up issues of sexual misconduct protects the school’s reputation right now, it won’t for long. If the sexual misconduct policy doesn’t change, I doubt that when our generation becomes alums we will be willing to support the school financially or otherwise; thus in the end the school’s attempt to cover up these incidents will backfire.
There are many wonderful things about Amherst, such as the professors, the diverse and driven students, and the amazing educational opportunities. I want to be proud of my Alma Mater again, and I think that Amherst will come through. When we need the administration to listen, they do. The passionate reactions to Angie’s article are proof that our community can be incredibly active and supportive. Thanks so much for your courage, Angie. You’ve given Amherst, and hopefully other colleges too, the push to finally start tackling a huge and prevalent problem. You are incredibly strong, and even if you felt let down by the Amherst administration, we want you to know that the student body has your back. We’ll be working to make sure that because you shared your story, what happened to you never happens to another Amherst student.