Jack Montague, a basketball captain for Yale, was found by a Yale University-Wide Committee panel that he had nonconsensual sex with a female student in October 2014. According to the case, Montague and the female student had sex four times but the fourth was nonconsensual. The statement said that the two had consensual sex one particular night but the female reached out to him again later that night and wanted to spend the night. However, she stated she did not consent to having sex.
There was slut shaming done by Montague's attorney:
"Only two persons could have known what happened on that fourth night," Stern said. "The panel chose to believe the woman, by a 'preponderance of the evidence.' We believe that it defies logic and common sense that a woman would seek to re-connect and get back into bed with a man who she says forced her to have unwanted sex just hours earlier. And yet the Dean accepted this conclusion and ordered Jack to be expelled. His decision was then upheld by the Provost."
This was unsettling to me because not only is Montague's attorney slut shaming the alleged victim, he is perpetuating the rape myth that if women show interest that they might want sex they can't revoke consent.
Montague's attorney was also stated saying the timing Yale officials to seeking expulsion of his client was not coincidental to the allegations against Yale's "largely under-reported" sexual assault allegations. He said: "From what appears, Jack has been pilloried as a 'whipping boy' for a campus problem that has galvanized national attention."
Yale decided to expel Montague for sexual assault in February. However, this comes during the NCAA tournament which was concerning to fans since he is a good player.
On February 26, Montague's teammates wore grey warmup jerseys with Montague's number 4 and his nickname "Gucci" to show their support during their game against Harvard.
This sparked outrage and a negative reaction by Yale students who used posters saying "Yale men's basketball, stop supporting a rapist" to show their disgust. The team ended up apologising.
I'm actually quite happy with the fact that Yale didn't, like many other sports schools, allow Montague to stay in school in order to continue his sports career and advance their university's sports team. I think Yale is setting an important example to other schools in that they are expelling a star athlete while he is still enrolled and playing for them, especially during the NCAA tournament.
I am, however, disappointed with the amount of media outlets concerned with the team's future and Montague's future. The emphasis should not be on the team or Montague's sports career. It should be on the alleged victim/survivor as well as addressing the fact that the university is seeking justice for them.
Last Monday, his attorney announced that Montague would be suing the University to "vindicate his rights."
Montague hasn't been charged with a criminal sexual assault complaint from Yale or the alleged victim.
Links for more information:
http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/14/us/jack-montague-to-sue-yale/
http://www.si.com/college-basketball/yale-bulldogs-ncaa-tournament-jack-montague-scandal-controversy
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/reminder-sexual-violence-against-women-is-more-important-than-sports_us_56eb1a57e4b09bf44a9ccf94
No comments:
Post a Comment