From the Welcome Week Assault to the Cosmpolitan article appearing in the about Temple’s response to dating violence and the open letter to Temple University from a transgender rape victim whose case was handled poorly, it’s safe to say Temple hasn’t been placing themselves in the most positive spotlight. Additionally, according to a May report in the Washington Post, Temple is one of 55 U.S. colleges and universities to face charges for mishandling its student’s claims regarding sexual harassment and violence.
“I don’t feel safe on campus because of what I’ve heard about from my friends and classmates,” Temple University freshman, Natalia Casademont, 18, said. “Temple is definitely too concerned with their reputation. People always think it’s a great school because of their academics, but people fail to see that we have a lot of other problems that are just as serious as academics, such as sexual assault and rape.”
The word “rape” has evolved over the years to take on a different meaning than it used to. Young girls are left to believe that sexual assault is their fault, and that because they did not verbally say no, they were “asking for it”.
“To me, rape and sexual assault stems from the culture that we live in that blames the victim no matter what and gives men free passes to do whatever they want. As a high school senior who is looking to come to Temple next year, finding out about this from close friends is making me reconsider my decision. I don’t want to go to a college where I feel unsafe at all times,” Stephanie Sottolano, 18, a high school senior stated.
According to Temple University’s Policies and Procedure’s manual on sexual assault, which was recently updated in the fall of 2013, “Mere assent (an affirmative statement or action) does not constitute consent if it is given by a person who is unable to make a reasonable judgment concerning the nature or harmfulness of the activity because of his or her incapacitating intoxication, unconsciousness, youth, mental deficiency or incapacity, or if the assent is the product of threat or coercion,” The manual then goes on to define the various types of sexual assault, stalking, domestic violence, and dating violence.
The manual states, “Temple University does not tolerate sexual assault. This policy is intended to promote an environment at Temple University that is free of sexual assault…dating violence, and stalking, as well as one that is consistent with other constitutional protections and personal freedoms,” (p. 3).
The 2013 Annual Crime Statistics on Temple’s website indicates that in 2012, only one sexual offense of forcible rape was reported. In both 2011 and 2010, three rapes were reported. Other accounts by students from the university, however, suggest otherwise.
“I know someone who was raped twice last year here and she didn’t report it, which I think is really strange that she didn’t do anything about it. I think that it’s Temple’s job to protect their students before their reputation. They should be more concerned with their student’s well-being. Now it’s coming back to haunt them because they look terrible for covering stuff up, instead of being honest about it and taking action in the situation,” said sophomore Milanka Karmolinksi.
“I barely see reports about Temple’s sexual assault because I feel like they try their best to not make things public,” Casademont said, “I know from other people that the sexual assault at this school is present and very serious. I wouldn’t have known about any of this if I hadn’t heard about it from other students that go here. The university needs to take these things more into consideration.”
While Temple University properly addresses rape in its policies and procedures, the actions of the university speak louder than their words. By neglecting to seek justice for those who have stepped forward and by failing to properly address the pertinent issue of rape and sexual assault that far too many students have been exposed to, Temple is neglecting the 38,000 students who count on their school to protect them.