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Disturbing Indeed
Yesterday, Robert noted the controversy raging at the University of Pennsylvania over a student who was improperly charged with sexual harassment for, as the Philadelphia Inquirer nicely puts it today, having 鈥減hotographed the bare backside of another student as she and her paramour apparently had sex in full view of the street below.鈥 Not surprisingly, the picture was circulated widely on the Internet, as was Penn鈥檚 not-so-bright idea of going after a student for taking a picture of a public event that鈥攁gain according to the Inquirer鈥攈ad been taking place for 鈥渟everal days.鈥
Today, we鈥檙e happy to hear that Penn has dropped its charges. Here鈥檚 more from the Inquirer piece:
The faces of the naked couple are not clear in any of the most infamous images. And because the university disciplinary process is confidential, Penn did not release the names of anyone involved in this case. Nonetheless, the female student鈥檚 identity has become well-known on campus.
鈥淢y client is emotionally shattered from what is an extremely disturbing ordeal,鈥 said Jordan Koko, her attorney. 鈥淭here has been a public invasion into her personal life.鈥
Wait, what? Let me get this straight: a student who deliberately chose to have sex in a public place not just once, but repeatedly, is complaining that people saw? Isn鈥檛 that, well, the point?
Memo to Madam Exhibitionist: what鈥檚 鈥渄isturbing鈥 about this 鈥渙rdeal鈥 is not the fact that Penn鈥檚 charges have been dropped. It鈥檚 that you would even think to file sexual harassment charges (and that a university would actually take them seriously) over something that (a) wasn鈥檛 even close to real harassment and (b) was 100 percent your fault. Justice has been served.
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