[2491] in peace2
PLEASE READ: Improve Harvard's Sexual Assault Policies Now Petition
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (stephanie wei Wang)
Tue Apr 22 23:43:29 2003
Message-Id: <200304230343.XAA14439@magic-pi-ball.mit.edu>
To: imagine@MIT.EDU
Date: Tue, 22 Apr 2003 23:43:07 -0400
From: stephanie wei Wang <sweiwang@MIT.EDU>
let us show solidarity with the coalition against sexual violence at harvard.
easiest action to take:
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/casv/petition.html
(writing that you are from mit is optional)
even better action to take:
write emails to harvard admins.
please read the following for details on what you can do.
thank you so much!
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AT HARVARD
On Thursday April 17th, after spending nearly a year studying the problem
of sexual violence at Harvard, the Committee to Address Sexual Assault at
Harvard (CASAH) issued its recommendations. The Coalition Against Sexual
Violence (CASV) enthusiastically supports the full implementation of all
of CASAH's recommendations. We also urge Harvard to undertake a full
review of the College's disciplinary procedures for adjudicating sexual
assault complaints - an issue that was explicitly omitted from CASAH's
mandate.
In this e-mail:
--what you can do to help make sure that CASAH's recommendations are
accepted and implemented!
--a sample e-mail you can send to CASAH and administrators voicing your
support of the recommendations (these emails will be counted, so
please send one in!! personal emails will mean the most, but feel free to
use this sample e-mail as a starting point).
--an outline of CASAH's main recommendations, and where to find the full
report.
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What you can do to make sure these recommendations are implemented:
1. SIGN THE PETITION at http://www.PetitionOnline.com/casv/petition.html
to urge Dean Lewis, Provost Hyman, President Summers, and the faculty to
fully implement CASAH's recommendations and to begin a full review of
Harvard's disciplinary procedures for the adjudication of sexual assault
complaints
2. WRITE AN EMAIL indicating your support of the adoption of CASAH's
recommendations and the initiation of a full review of discipline (please
send your e-mails to casah@fas.harvard.edu and cc: lewis@harvard.edu,
steven_hyman@harvard.edu, gross@math.harvard.edu, and
lawrence_summers@harvard.edu)
3. COME TO CASAH's "OPEN FORUM" on Wednesday, April 23 from 7 - 9
pm in Ticknor Lounge in Boylston to share your opinions on and voice
support for the report.
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Sample E-mail
(Please use this as an example and send a personal email of your own!)
Dear [CASAH, President Summers, Dean Lewis, Dean Gross, Provost Hyman],
I am writing to let you know that I enthusiastically support the full and
timely implementation of all of the recommendations of the Committee to
Address Sexual Assault at Harvard. These important recommendations would
greatly improve Harvard's preventative sexual assault education and its
support for survivors. Since the Committee was not charged with reviewing
Harvard's disciplinary procedures for the adjudication of sexual assault
complaints--and since disciplinary procedures are an integral part of
Harvard's response to the problem of sexual assault--I firmly believe that
a full review of these disciplinary procedures must be initiated.
Thanks,
YOUR NAME
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CASAH's Recommendations: (available online at www.fas.harvard.edu/~casah)
Probably the most important of CASAH's recommendations is the creation of
an Office of Sexual Assault Prevention and Response that will be
responsible for designing and implementing all preventative sexual assault
education efforts and will serve as a centralized resource for survivors.
This office will have two full-time and one part-time staff members and would
send the message that Harvard is dedicated to addressing the problem of
sexual violence on campus.
Other recommendations:
Education:
--a separate night during Freshman Week devoted to preventative sexual
assault education
--small group discussions with trained professional and peer educators for
both freshmen and sophomores
Support Services:
--staff at the Office would help survivors find appropriate physical and
mental healthcare, assist survivors in making informed decisions
about the Ad Board and legal options, and work to make whatever academic,
residential, and other accommodations are necessary for the survivor
--training about sexual assault for all first contacts
--designation of specific UHS mental health professionals with expertise
in sexual assault; these therapists will set aside time to see survivors,
so that it will be easier to schedule regular appointments
Discipline:
--hiring of a trained fact finder to investigate peer-to-peer disputes,
including sexual assault cases; this change would hopefully result in
more effectiveinvestigations and a faster process.
--process training for the Ad Board (as well as training about sexual
assault for all Resident Deans, who make up half of the Ad Board)
--the elimination of mandatory contact between the survivor and his/her
Resident Dean or the Dean of Coeducation; instead, the survivor can choose
to use a staff member from the Office of Sexual Assault Prevention and
Response as his/her advocate during the Ad Board process (however, a staff
member from the Office cannot be present during Ad Board deliberations);
hopefully this change would result in an increased level of support for
the survivor as s/he goes through the Ad Board process
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Stephanie Wei Wang
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
sweiwang@mit.edu
this email was bcc-ed to: sos-members, peace-announce, peace-women, pro-choice, greens-announce, mit-cds, women-announce
