<p>I always hear rumors that women are treated badly at Yale. Is this true or is it just that, a rumor?</p>
<p>I doubt they are, but then again I wouldn’t know as I don’t attend Yale. All the women I know who attend and who attended extremely enjoyed their experience, though.</p>
<p>I suspect these rumors come from the Title IX complaints and other news stories surrounding sexual harassment. I think this is a result of the fact that women’s rights are more strongly defended at Yale rather than the other way around. Let me explain:</p>
<p>Like at any college, a few people will do bad things and act inappropriately. At most places, these things get ignored and viewed as isolated incidents. At Yale, where the Women’s Center is strong and most students believe in advocating for causes, issues like this get thrown into the spotlight for the purpose of creating change. A dialogue is created around improving the situation, and naturally, that dialogue can create the illusion that the problem is worse here than at other places, whereas the reality might be that the problem is common around all colleges, and Yale is the only place looking for a solution.</p>
<p>Of course, I am a guy who has never personally witnessed any sexual harassment, and I can only speak about my impression of the situation from a distance.</p>
<p>You mean this article.
[Pervasive</a> sexism threatens Yale?s women | Yale Daily News](<a href=“http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2008/jan/25/pervasive-sexism-threatens-yales-women/]Pervasive”>http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2008/jan/25/pervasive-sexism-threatens-yales-women/)</p>
<p>Aren’t there better and more recent articles than this one from 2008?</p>
<p>That’s not an article; it’s an op-ed. It also pretty much supports what imaginecreate says above–there are problems with sexism at Yale, as at every campus, but people at Yale are sensitized to the issue and react strongly to incidents.</p>
<p>Didn’t Yale have that “who would you like to rape?” list last fall?</p>
<p>
That was a fraternity at the University of Vermont.</p>
<p>^^oh, sorry about that. I wasnt trying to slander the school, I actually like it. I should have checked that out first.</p>
<p>Chauvinistic males are certainly not found in higher proportion at Yale compared to at other schools. Anecdotal evidence would suggest the contrary. While recognizing that some people’s complaints are valid and serious, I do think Yale has comparatively more people who aren’t willing to let things slide and some of them like to object to relatively trivial matters.</p>