Betsy DeVos to soften Obama-era campus sexual violence standards, citing the rights of the accused

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published 7 September 2017

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced Thursday that she will be reviewing Obama-era campus sexual assault standards in an attempt to "balance" the scales of "Lady Justice."

Under former President Barack Obama, schools were urged to pursue sexual harassment and assault cases under the Title IX anti-discrimination law, a policy DeVos criticized for being unfair and complicated. "Instead of working with schools on behalf of students, the prior administration weaponized the Office for Civil Rights to work against schools and against students," she said, vowing that "the era of 'rule by letter' is over."

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This conversation has too often been framed as a contest between men and women or the rights of sexual misconduct survivors and the due process rights of accused students. The reality is, however, a different picture. There are men and women, boys and girls, who are survivors, and there are men and women, boys and girls who are wrongfully accused. I've met them personally. I've heard their stories. And the rights of one person can never be paramount to the rights of another. [Department of Education]

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.