Trump Administration: Who are you here to serve? Survivors of sexual violence want to know
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Institutions have been failing survivors of sexual violence for decades. Years after students across the country initiated a wave of activism to hold these very institutions accountable, we are still being forced to ask the same question
: “Exactly who are they here to serve? The students, or themselves?” As survivors of sexual violence, we’ve continually had to advocate for ourselves, often because no one would advocate for us. We have been forced to ask this question again and again, of all the institutions that are supposed to serve us: of our Title IX administrators, police officers, schools, teachers, deans, and now, our government. This is not a philosophical or academic question regarding the responsibilities of higher education administration. It drastically impacts our and our peers’ lives — and now we must pose it to the highest offices in the country. Today, we 118 survivors of sexual assault, ask the Trump Administration and Secretary Betsy DeVos: “exactly who are
you
here to serve?” For us, this is personal, and traumatizing. From the moment we were raped or assaulted, the question of who protects us has haunted us all. Collectively, we represent thousands of instances of institutional failure at colleges, universities, and K-12 schools. We suffered immensely, as did our academics, relationships, and overall well-being. Institutional betrayal forced many of us, and countless others, to leave school. We do not simply represent the failures of the very institutions that are supposed to help us, but the need for strong and clear enforcement of Title IX. After we shared our most painful personal stories loudly and clearly, the U.S. Department of Education and the White House reminded universities of their responsibilities under Title IX. The guidance, known as the 2011 Dear Colleague Letter, was clear: universities have a legal responsibility to protect their students from gender discrimination, rather than universities protecting their own bottom line, often at the survivor’s expense. Accommodations and protections clarified in the guidance enabled many of us to complete our education. It gave us hope for the survivors who would come after us. Our hope may have been premature. At every turn, Betsy DeVos has refused to commit to enforcing Title IX. This reluctance is escalating into a full blown threat to future enforcement of
Title IX. The administration already egregiously overturned 2016 guidance that protected transgender students from Title IX violations. Now, the administration has signaled that it is seriously considering further dismantling protections for survivors of sexual violence by weakening the oversight and enforcement mechanisms of the federal government — enforcement that many vulnerable students and survivors need. We come forward with a simple request: Don’t. Today, we, 118 survivors of sexual assault write in a single unified voice, representing 25 states, and all political parties and views, to demand that the Trump Administration commit to doing more to serve survivors of sexual violence. Simply paying lip service to our need for safety on campus will not suffice. We implore the administration to maintain the status quo of all current Title IX guidance, policy, Violence Against Women Act funding and programs: a status quo that has been created and upheld by public servants and legal professionals on both sides of the aisle. We demand they listen to the voices of students and survivors, rather than college lawyers and lobbyists, when determining the best course of administrative action to keep all students safe in school. We remind the Trump Administration that we, students and those who have suffered violence, are those the Department of Education is directed to serve — not college lawyers on a university payroll. Survivors simply want the protections to remain in schools that the federal government and courts have institutionalized over the last two decades. We cannot imagine a more cruel or misguided policy agenda than one that withdraws protections from vulnerable students — especially coming from the administration of a man who has been repeatedly accused of committing sexual violence himself. To Betsy Devos, President Trump and the rest of the Trump administration: Survivors of sexual assault have refused to be silent since this administration began its journey to the White House. We will not be silenced now. And to survivors of sexual assault everywhere: We believe you. We support you. You are not alone. Jess Davidson, Colorado Annie E. Clark, North Carolina Anna Kim, New York Britney Howard, Kentucky
Haley Smith, Indiana Rachel Landau, New York Anna Earley, North Carolina Chardonnay Madkins, California Emma Huffman, Indiana Christine Fei, Maryland Kirat Sandhu, Indiana Danielle Bowman, Indiana Jordan Dashow, Washington D.C. Emily Santor, California Meredith Tolleson, Colorado Margot Mayer, New York Olivia Storz, Colorado Colleen Daly, Washington D.C Shannon Saul, Colorado Brittani Skyers-White, New York Lily Nussbaum, Colorado Kelly Davis, Pennsylvania Maya Weinstein, Washington D.C. Andrea Pino, Florida Lupita Gonzalez, Minnesota Meghan Hampsey, New York Sofie Karasek, Massachusetts Rebecca Krevat, New York Alexandra Brodsky, Washington D.C. Zoe Dorau, Washington D.C. Meghan Warner, California Maria Sauer, Wisconsin Alicia Weigel, Texas Faith Ferber, Illinois Mahroh Jahangiri, Washington D.C. Erin Bergen, Indiana Bridgette Walling, California Aliya Webermann, Maryland Alyssa Peterson, Pennsylvania Andrea Watson, Colorado Dana Bolger, Missouri Jacqueline Lin, California Elena Maria Riecke, New York