Statute of Limitations Runs Out on Injustice at Yale University

266 words

The November 1st article in the New York Times “Handling of Sexual Harassment Case Poses Larger Questions at Yale” is a serious understatement to the seriousness of the implications this incident holds at Yale University. Author Tamar Lewin, while giving a detailed summary of the events, misses the point of the wide scale and urgent nature of this issue.
There is one major flaw with this article. That is that these events took place about five years ago, a period of time long enough for a statute of limitations to run out on a case, and long enough where questions need to be asked. Why is it that we are only seeing media coverage on this case now, five years following these events? The reasons the implications of this incident are so serious is two fold. The first, is that these doctors work as professionals to save the lives of those whose health is in great stress. What does the neglectful nature of the University and their superiors to address this issue say? That they would rather ignore or cover up sexual harassment at the expense of innocent lives? Lastly, this article down plays how important awareness of sexual harassment truly is. Had this been seen as a more pertinent issue, it may not have taken upwards of five years for attention to be drawn to it.
While the New York Times summarizes the now out of date story, they do a serious injustice to the severity of this case and the unjust nature of all parties involved.

Colleen Corry
Student in Sociology, SSU