I don't support the existence of institutions that operate parallel to the legal system.
If they favor the victim, then they will tend to punish people who would not have been found guilty of a crime in a court of law, and so it is very hard to determine if the accused was given due process.
If they favor the accused, then they direct complaints away form the legal system and thereby protect criminals.
I think that the support system that the university provides should be more oriented towards directing people who consider themselves to be victims towards the legal system, not trying to replace the legal system. Then there would be no expectation that Harvard define sexual assault or rape in a particular way, and the responsibility for defining these things would fall where it belongs: with lawmakers and the courts.
There's some great utility in having campus police forces--a great many sorts of dumb things are better handled with a softer touch than you'd get were you to use the normal cops.
I can maybe see a case for forcing them to use the same police departments as everybody else, in hopes that it would motivate the parents and community involved into maybe actually fixing a broken system.
More likely, though, you'll end up with worse enforcement, because why would cops deal with "stupid college kids" when they could be stopping real crimes? I'd bet they'd just be ignored.
Cue activists attempting to suppress rational discussion with cute but meaningless catch-phrases. The alleged-victim may or may not, in fact, be at fault. Labeling and demonizing those who don't mindlessly support her adds nothing to the conversation.
Also, exactly what does this article have to do with HN?
If they favor the victim, then they will tend to punish people who would not have been found guilty of a crime in a court of law, and so it is very hard to determine if the accused was given due process.
If they favor the accused, then they direct complaints away form the legal system and thereby protect criminals.
I think that the support system that the university provides should be more oriented towards directing people who consider themselves to be victims towards the legal system, not trying to replace the legal system. Then there would be no expectation that Harvard define sexual assault or rape in a particular way, and the responsibility for defining these things would fall where it belongs: with lawmakers and the courts.