It’s amazing how many college sex scandals have been brought to light over the past few months. The few individuals behind these scandals have soiled the reputation of their respective universities and their colleagues, dragging both of them down in a spiral of shameful infamy. These scandals make a person wonder what is really happening at universities behind closed doors, especially on this campus.
According to reports, Chadima’s victim approached supervisors about the abuse, but didn’t want anything done that could jeopardize the team’s chances at the Rose Bowl. Administrators seemed willing to comply, as the incident wasn’t reported to UW police lieutenant Jason Whitney until the team returned to Madison — even though Whitney traveled with the team to the game. The victim may have wanted to keep things under wraps, but the officials had an obligation to report this as soon as they were told.
The first thought for these officials was the terrible effects the scandal could have on the Rose Bowl they were about to play, not the victim. This is wrong in every way. The message that gets sent across from these actions is that the image of the athletics department is more valuable than a sexually harassed victim.
The process that takes place before the public or the university is aware of a scandal takes time. While the University of Wisconsin scandal only took about a month to go public, the Penn State scandal took years before the public knew what had happened. These scandals bring about a startling question: What’s going on at our own university that we are not aware of? According to the American Association of University Women, 61 percent of males and 62 percent females are sexually harassed during college. However, 10 percent actually report the abuse to a university employee. Who knows how many of these abuses have been covered up by the victims’ universities?
A sexual abuse scandal between professor or official and students could be happening right under our noses. Nevertheless, the victim of such a scandal would probably not want to come forth, due to personal reasons — shame or intimidation, to name a few. For those who do come forward, the investigative and reporting process should be swift and extensive, despite the reputation that a university might lose. Such scandals cannot be allowed to continue.
