Senator Patty Murray's office issued the following:
Senator Murray Slams Education Secretary DeVos’ Proposed Title IX Rule, Urges Committee to Listen to Survivors’ Stories and Experiences As Committee Works to Address Campus Sexual Assault
At Senate education committee hearing, Senator Murray
highlights need for Congress to address epidemic of campus sexual
assault by finding legislative solution to protect students from sexual assault and harassment
Sharing stories from
survivors in WA & nationwide, Senator Murray condemns Secretary
DeVos’ proposed changes to Title IX, which would once again sweep sexual
assault under the rug by allowing schools to shirk their responsibility
to keep students safe
Senator Murray to
student survivors: “I stand with you and I’m going to keep fighting to
stop what happened to you from happening to other students”
(Washington, D.C.)
– Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), top Democrat on the Senate
education committee, blasted Secretary DeVos’ proposed changes to Title
IX, which students, parents, teachers, and experts agree are callous,
ignore the experiences of survivors and the advice of experts, and are
likely to discourage students from coming forward after being sexually
assaulted. During a Senate hearing on addressing campus sexual assault
and ensuring student safety and rights, Senator Murray shared several
stories of sexual assault survivors to illustrate the importance of
Title IX protections, why Secretary DeVos’ proposal would further harm
survivors, and what progress needs to made to ensure every student is
able to learn in an environment free from harassment or assault. The
hearing comes as Senator Murray works on reauthorizing the Higher Education Act (HEA), an effort in which she is prioritizing education affordability, accountability, accessibility, and campus safety and students’ rights.
Key excerpts of Senator Murray’s opening statement:
“I am so in awe of the women and men
who have shared one of the worst moments of their lives in order to let
other survivors know it’s okay to come forward and to try to stop it
from happening to others. But in listening to these stories, it’s clear
there is much more that both Congress and colleges and universities need
to do to prevent sexual assault—and to ensure students feel safe after
it does happen. Students like Sarah from my home state of
Washington—Sarah’s school found she had been raped and yet still forced
her to go to school with her assaulter. Sarah felt that Title IX ‘failed
her entirely.’
“By limiting the definition of
harassment and only requiring schools to act if an attack is reported to
specific school officials, Secretary DeVos’ proposal would discourage
students from coming forward because they feel they won’t be believed or
have their claims taken seriously.”
“Students who have been assaulted have
every right to use the judicial system to seek justice, but schools
also have a responsibility to students. Every student should be treated
equally and fairly, the process should be unbiased and transparent, and
students should know what the process is before they enter it, and it
should be consistent for all cases. And we must have a process that
ensures students have access to an education without being forced to be
re-traumatized. We cannot have the trappings of the judicial system
without the protections of it.”
“So I’m pleased we’re having this
hearing, and I hope as we continue this conversation—we can continue to
lift up the voices of survivors, listen to their stories, and use them
to influence our decisions. We cannot address this issue without
listening to them and I am so thankful for all the survivors in the room
here today. I stand with you and I’m going to keep fighting to stop
what happened to you from happening to other students.”
Full text of Senator Murray’s opening statement below:
“Thank you Chairman Alexander.
“I am pleased this Committee is working
towards a comprehensive reauthorization of the Higher Education Act that
addresses all of the issues students are facing in higher education.
“And in order for a reauthorization to be truly comprehensive—it must address four student-centered priorities.
“Making college more affordable and addressing the exploding student debt crisis…
“Holding colleges accountable for students’ success…
“Increasing access and opportunities for historically unrepresented students…
“And ensuring our students are able to learn in an environment free from discrimination, harassment, and assault.
“We’ve had a number of productive discussions in this Committee about the first three priorities…
“And I’m pleased we are turning to the critical issue of campus safety today.
“Our conversation today is focused on addressing the scourge of campus sexual assault—and that’s so important.
“But as we work together on reauthorizing
HEA—I hope we can also address the levels of bullying, hazing, and
harassment happening on our campuses.
“We owe it to students like Tyler Clementi—who tragically took his own life after he was bullied by his fellow classmates...
“And the students who have died on college campuses around the country as a result of dangerous hazing practices.
“Jeopardizing their safety is not a price students should have to pay just to get an education.
“So—with that in mind—I want to turn to
the topic of our hearing today—addressing campus sexual assault and
ensuring students’ safety.
“The intention of Title IX was to ensure that no student can be discriminated against in school on the basis of sex…
“And that means schools must respond appropriately to sexual harassment, rape, or sexual assault.
“But for too long, this was the unspoken norm on our college campuses…
“Survivors didn’t report their attacks—ashamed or afraid they would be blamed…
“And when they did come forward—schools
would ignore or hide these stories—and refused to take the necessary
steps to prevent sexual violence going forward.
“But over the past few years—brave women
and men have come forward and used their personal experiences with
sexual assault to shine a light on what’s been happening on college
campuses around the country for decades.
“And for the first time—this epidemic is
finally being taken seriously by schools and universities, by the
public, and by Congress.
“I am so in awe of the women and men who
have shared one of the worst moments of their lives in order to let
other survivors know it’s okay to come forward and to try to stop it
from happening to others.
“But in listening to these stories, it’s
clear there is much more that both Congress and colleges and
universities need to do to prevent sexual assault—and to ensure students
feel safe after it does happen.
“Students like Sarah from my home state of Washington.
“Sarah’s school found she had been raped and yet still forced her to go to school with her assaulter.
“Sarah felt that Title IX ‘failed her entirely.’
“And Jennifer from Michigan—who after reported being sexually harassed by a classmate—she felt her case was written off as ‘insignificant and unbelievable.’
“Jennifer grew into a deep depression by not being believed by school administrators—and says Title IX should be ‘strengthened, not de-fanged.’
“And yet—de-fanging campus sexual assault protection is exactly what Secretary DeVos is proposing to do.
“Her proposed rule would weaken protections for students and allow schools to shirk their responsibility to keep students safe.
“By only requiring schools to investigate
claims that happen on their campus—it would mean that Brittany’s school
wouldn’t be responsible for her rape.
“Brittany was raped in her off-campus
apartment a few years ago—and she said without protections under Title
IX afforded to her, she would have never returned to finish her degree.
“By limiting the definition of harassment
and only requiring schools to act if an attack is reported to specific
school officials…
“Secretary DeVos’ proposal would
discourage students from coming forward because they feel they won’t be
believed or have their claims taken seriously.
“As Alice, a survivor of sexual assault, said—there needs to be a wider definition of sexual assault so survivors can ‘receive the recognition, care, and action that they need.’
“And by requiring survivors to be directly cross examined in live hearings by the accused or their representative…
“This proposal would mean survivors would
have to relive their trauma while being questioned by people who may be
wholly unqualified to question survivors.
“Thousands of students, parents, teachers,
and experts across the country have pointed out that parts of the
proposed rule are callous, ignore the experiences of survivors and the
advice of experts, and are likely to discourage students from coming
forward.
“So, Chairman Alexander, as we work to reauthorize the Higher Education Act—we must reverse the harmful steps Secretary DeVos has taken and make meaningful progress to address campus sexual assault.
“And as we do that, it is imperative that we do not turn colleges into fake court rooms.
“Students who have been assaulted have
every right to use the judicial system to seek justice, but schools also
have a responsibility to students.
“Every student should be treated equally and fairly…
“The process should be unbiased and transparent…
“And students should know what the process is before they enter it, and it should be consistent for all cases.
“And we must have a process that ensures students have access to an education without being forced to be re-traumatized.
“We cannot have the trappings of the judicial system without the protections of it.
“So I’m pleased we’re having this hearing,
and I hope as we continue this conversation—we can continue to lift up
the voices of survivors, listen to their stories, and use them to
influence our decisions.
“We cannot address this issue without listening to them and I am so thankful for all the survivors in the room here today.
“I stand with you and I’m going to keep fighting to stop what happened to you from happening to other students.
“We need a legislative solution to ensure students are able to get an education without being sexually harassed or assaulted…
“And Chairman Alexander—I look forward to working with you on that.
“Thank you.”
