Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

New Student Group to Advocate Against Sexual Misconduct

SHEEL PATEL/THE HOYA A new student organization called Students Taking Action Against Interpersonal Violence has been created to help combat sexual misconduct on campus.

Forty-nine students formed Students Taking Action Against Interpersonal Violence to advocate against sexual misconduct on campus and to create a campus advocacy space that was not previously organized or feasible through official student organizations.

The group, not formally recognized by the university, focuses on advocacy against sexual misconduct, and pursues a more specific mission than other organizations, such as the Georgetown University Student Association, according to STAIV member and Georgetown University Student Association Sexual Assault and Student Safety Policy Chair Grace Perret (COL ’20).

“The point is that there’s no one space that’s taking this issue and saying, ‘This is the main thing that we focus on,’” Perret said. “I think GUSA can help support those students, and I intend to in my role … But at the same time, I think the university tends to respond best when there is widespread student engagement around an issue.”

After sending an open letter to university administrators Aug. 31 demanding action and transparency about the yet-unfilled post of a Title IX coordinator, Daria Crawford (COL ’20), Avery Moje (COL ’19), Kore Stuer (COL, ’19), Andy Turner (SFS ’20) and Susu Zhao (COL ’19) decided forming a large, organized group would allow them to expand their advocacy efforts.

STAIV’s four meetings this semester have produced a number of priorities for the group. Those priorities include addressing changes to Obama-era Title IX rules about how universities should address allegations of on-campus sexual assault due as early as this week; advocating for sexual assault response training for the Georgetown University Police Department; and ensuring completion of recommendations made by the Sexual Assault and Misconduct Taskforce.

The group formed in response to recent events, such as the allegations of sexual assault Christine Blasey Ford levied against then-nominee to the Supreme Court Brett Kavanaugh, according to Perret.

“I think the events of this semester made the need for a group like STAIV seem all the more urgent,” Perret wrote in an email to The Hoya.

Many new students were motivated to join because of national and on-campus incidents that occurred this semester, such as the resignation of former GUSA president Sahil Nair (SFS ’19) amid sexual misconduct allegations. No complaints had been filed against Nair through the Title IX office or the Office of Student Conduct, he wrote in a May 28 email to The Hoya. A university spokesperson confirmed that, as of May 2019, Nair was not the subject of any complaints through either office nor had he been found responsible for any violations of the Student Code of Conduct.

“There are definitely some freshmen and sophomores who have heard about what’s been going on,” Perret wrote. “This semester began with the resignation of the GUSA president, with Kavanaugh, we’re in the Me Too moment.”

STAIV’s status as an unrecognized group allows its members to engage in activism on issues related to sexual misconduct, which is not the purpose of existing official student organizations that address sexual misconduct, according to Moje, a Sexual Assault Peer Educator and Bringing in the Bystander facilitator.

“SAPE and these other organizations on campus are limited in what we can do in terms of asking the university to make some changes in how the climate of the university functions and how the policies of the university are put in place,” Moje said. “That’s much more the student activism area, and something that, even though we’re involved in SAPE, something we can’t do through SAPE.”

The group started meeting in early October, with varying but growing levels of attendance. The group runs meetings democratically, by setting the agenda as a group and electing an attendee to lead.

Broadening the group to to include freshmen is intended to sustain its activism even after involved seniors graduate, Moje said.

Students involved in STAIV learned about the organization through word-of-mouth, mostly through organizations on campus that address sexual misconduct, according to Perret. Many members have concurrent involvement in H*yas for Choice, the women’s and gender studies program, SAPE or Women in Faith.

A goal is to include more men in the group, Moje said.

Zhao echoed Moje’s sentiment and hopes to engage communities that may otherwise have less involvement in their advocacy efforts.

“I hope that STAIV continues to grow and engage communities on campus, particularly those that are traditionally excluded from anti-sexual violence movements,” Zhao wrote in an email to The Hoya.

With the Education Department’s upcoming release of a new rule, replacing former President Barack Obama’s guidance, Perret urged the university to communicate to students how the rule will affect its policies and to express their support of survivors.

“STAIV is definitely one of many groups, but we’re trying to bring together organizations on campus and individuals on campus who are invested in pushing the university to make a comment and stand with survivors,” Perret wrote.

This article was updated July 2 to indicate the absence of Title IX or Office of Student Conduct complaints against Nair and to include comment from Nair.

Leave a Comment
Donate to The Hoya

Your donation will support the student journalists of Georgetown University. Your contribution will allow us to purchase equipment and cover our annual website hosting costs.

More to Discover
Donate to The Hoya

Comments (0)

All The Hoya Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *