Avast ye! Beware, me hearties! Biden be plannin' to tamper with Title IX, settin' yer son's college life adrift!
2023-09-12
Arrr, mateys! Biden be makin' a swashbucklin' move, overturnin' the rules set by that scurvy Trump in 2020 fer Title IX. Aye, the winds be changin'!
Parents dropping their sons off at college should have a serious conversation about the risk of being accused of sexual assault, especially with the Biden administration's changes to Title IX coming in October. Under these new rules, accused college students will no longer have the right to a live hearing, cross-examination, or legal representation. Instead, a school administrator will act as investigator, judge, and jury, making a decision based on the "credibility" of each party. The standard for determining guilt will also be weakened from "clear and convincing" to a "preponderance of the evidence," which is not ideal in cases that often rely on conflicting testimonies. While there has been a lot of coverage on transgender participation in women's sports, the enfeeblement of due process rights for those accused of sexual harassment and assault is a more consequential issue for most students.These changes have raised concerns among college students, particularly young men. They represent a reversal of the rules implemented by the Trump administration and a return to the "believe all women" attitude of the Obama administration. While false accusations are rare, individuals who are wrongly accused deserve the right to prove their innocence. Stripping accused students of their right to a fair hearing is not the path to justice. Under the Obama administration's rules, there were numerous lawsuits brought by accused students alleging unfair disciplinary proceedings, and many of these suits were successful.
The lack of due process can have severe consequences. In one case, a Columbia University graduate student was cleared of allegations after four years of fighting in court, in part because he had recorded audio of the incident. Another case involved an Afghan refugee who won a scholarship to Yale but was expelled after being accused of rape. He was acquitted in a criminal court but faced expulsion after a Yale hearing that lacked due process protections. The Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that the lack of due process rendered the hearing invalid, leaving the accuser without immunity from defamation.
While it's important to support survivors and seek justice, it is equally crucial to ensure that the accused are provided with a fair and impartial process. The Biden administration's changes to Title IX risk undermining due process rights and potentially leading to unjust outcomes.