2021 Gumbo final - Book - Page 92
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tasa protest
S
exual assault allegations against LSU athletes are
nothing new, but the University has never seemed
to do much about it.
In November, USA Today published a disturbing story
about LSU’s mishandling of sexual assault allegations against
athletes. There was outrage immediately following the
story’s publication, which led to student leaders on campus
planning a march on campus to protest the University’s lack
of response.
The USA Today story reported that the LSU athletic
department, administration and police repeatedly ignored
allegations against its athletes. The blatant mishandling of
these cases went beyond student athletes. The University
gave three non-athletes “deferred suspensions” after they
were proven to have committed sexual assault against other
students.
Samantha Brennan, who says she was photographed
nude without her consent by running back Derrius Guice,
said the University told her she would have to wait until
the statute of limitations ran out on her allegation in order
to obtain her LSUPD report. The statute of limitations is six
years.
Tigers Against Sexual Assault (TASA) organized a protest
on November 20th at the Parade Grounds. Hundreds of
people showed up. Angelina Cantelli, co-president of TASA,
said she was motivated because she was outraged at the
things that were revealed in the article.
“I think this will show administrators that students care
about this issue and want to see changes and it’s not just
victims that care, it’s the entire student body,” Cantelli said.
“Consent is a human right, and we don’t want another
bogus press conference. We want answers,” said Angel
Upshaw, the other co-president of TASA, during her address
at the protest.
After her address, she led the crowd through LSU campus,
ending at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Once the
entire crowd arrived, TASA officers spoke then allowed
volunteer members of the audience to say some words.
“I don’t understand why 20-year-old people don’t
understand the concept of keeping your hands to yourself.
We, the people, deserve better.” one speaker said.
A judge has ordered LSU to turn over unredacted
documents relating to Brennan’s accusations against Guice
to USA Today, after the school originally refused to do so. The
judge also ordered the University to pay for the newspaper’s
legal fees, as well as over $6,000 in civil penalties.
Since the USA Today article was published, the University
announced they hired the Husch Blackwell law firm to
conduct an investigation. The results of that investigation
were released in February.
The Department of Education sent a letter to LSU interim
president Tom Galligan on February 2nd that they would
be investigating the University for violation of the Clery Act,
which requires publicly funded universities to be transparent
about crime on campus.
Remember, you are not alone. Contact a trusted family
member, friend or the National Sexual Assault Hotline at
1-(800)-656-4673 if you need help.