Morehouse Sexual Assault Case

Sexual assault is a prevalent issue often not addressed nor discussed on the campuses of HBCU’s.

On March 28, 2018 Raekwon Griffin tweeted the following:

https://twitter.com/iam_Raekwon/status/979142244899926016

“While my assailant is currently running for @MorehouseSGA VP, I am left to question if my institution will serve restorative justice. Men that have been abused by other men are oftentimes ashamed of their abuse, silent or private about their abuse, or don’t acknowledge it at all.”

Griffin is one of many survivors of sexual assault on HBCU campuses. Studies show that 1 in 6 men will experience sexual abuse before they reach 18.

Morehouse’s Title IX office is currently investigating the details of this case.

However, Griffin’s alleged assailant is currently seeking the position of Morehouse SGA Vice President. This has brought a plethora of things into question. Should students who are involved in active Title IX investigations be allowed to seek leadership positions on campus?

Morehouse currently does not have any policies in place preventing a student from being ineligible for a leadership position, because they are under investigation.

Griffin is “frustrated” because he is trying to move on from this situation and he is forced to see the face of his assailant on posters and making appearances around campus. Although he is currently in therapy, it makes the healing process so much harder when you are confronted with the face of your assailant every day.

Griffin also expressed that not only does Morehouse not have a disciplinary policy for students involved in title Ix investigations, there are also inadequate resources for students who are survivors of sexual assault.

Therapy sessions, anxiety and depression medications can be very costly for college students and sometimes are not covered by insurance. This forces students to pay out of pocket or go untreated due to lack of resources.

Raekwon Griffin’s story is only one of many, and most go untold. Griffin says “Male-to-Male sexual violence often goes unspoken about for a variety of reasons. Especially in the black community.” He hopes that his story will spark more conversations on HBCU campuses everywhere so that solutions can be found to this issue. He also hopes that Morehouse will put a disciplinary policy in place for students involved in Title IX investigation.