Students at one of the world’s most prestigious universities have filed a sexual assault case against Harvard-based John Comaroff, an engineering professor originally from Cape Town.
Professor Comaroff has been accused of a slew of wrongdoing, including ‘unwanted sexual contact’ with some of his students. He’s also accused of verbally harassing some students and intimidating them with ‘professional retaliation’ – a process that would have seen the SA national discredit and obstruct his accusers’ careers.
Today, my peers and fellow @hgsuuaw members marched in the yard to protest the way @Harvard has handled the sexual harassment case against John Comaroff and demand #RealRecourse for survivors.
The bare minimum a university should do is protect its students. We deserve better. pic.twitter.com/N3SSyDYyiH
— Rachel Jacoby (@rachelajacoby) February 15, 2022
The lawsuit filed against the professor incorporates a number of shocking details, including an alleged conversation he had with an LGBTQI+ student. Comaroff allegedly dismissed her desire to work in Africa, claiming that she would be subjected to ‘corrective rape.’ According to the court records, this was not his first mention of it.
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Victims have been dissatisfied with the university’s own investigative process into the accused, which has so far failed to substantiate evidence of any physical sexual assault. The fact that 38 fellow professors signed a letter in support of Comaroff didn’t help their cause, but the tide has shifted within Harvard’s faculty.
After learning more about the case, it is believed that 35 signatories removed their names from the letter. Nevertheless, protesters see this initial stance as an impediment to justice, claiming that “the damage was already done.”
You should really read the complaint against Harvard sex pest and renowned ‘Africanist’ John Comaroff. Especially the part where Harvard acquires one woman’s therapist’s notes and gives them to her abuser. https://t.co/p8kKNS3nAJ
— Dan Greene (@Greene_DM) February 8, 2022
