Student Assembly

Whereas, the broader Cornell community has become increasingly aware of issues of violence against women in light of recent incidents of forcible touching; and

Whereas, forcible touching is a form of sexual assault; and

Whereas, there are frequently instances of violence against women, including sexual abuse, sexual assault and rape that go unreported or unresolved on this campus; and,

Whereas, sexual violence does not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, age, class or sexual orientation and can happen to anyone at anytime; and

Whereas, basic ideas like consent and “drunk means no” are under-appreciated on this campus; and

Whereas, the definitions of “sexual assault”, “sexual abuse”, “sexual misconduct”, and “incapable of consent” as outlined in University Policy 6.3 are widely unknown to the Cornell community; and

Whereas, the administration has provided an inadequate response to alleviate the worries and concerns of students; and

Whereas, the Campus Sexual Assault Victims’ Bill of Rights of 1992 mandates that universities develop policies to prevent sexual assault and provide support for victims; and

Be it therefore resolved, that the Student Assembly strongly condemns violence of any sort targeted at any individual or group for any reason, and specifically violence against women and sexual assault; and

Be it further resolved, that the Student Assembly urges the administration of Cornell University to look at implementing innovative means of preventing sexual assaults on campus and greatly improve the enforcement mechanisms charged with handling such issues, including the Office of the Judicial Administrator and the University Hearing Board.

Respectfully submitted,

Matt Danzer ‘12
Student Assembly LGBTQ at-Large Representative

Eva Drago ‘12
Board Member, Women’s Resource Center