Bucknell University revealed they hired an outside firm to investigate an incident of harassment targeting gay and transgender students last week.
A group of male students, who were all members of a fraternity that is no longer permitted on campus, went back to their old house on Thursday, which has since been converted to a gay and transgender dormitory, and “harassed and intimidated” the residents “while attempting to enter the building,” according to a press release from the Pennsylvania-based university released a day later.
The residents said they were “astounded by the amount of advocacy and kindness we have received” after the incident and called for the dormitory to be permanently dedicated to the gay and transgender community in a collective statement.
The university has called the incident “horrific” and said they were “outraged and sorrowful” while pledging “unequivocal support” for gay and transgender students.
Resident adviser Tyler Luong, in a letter addressed to the university president, claimed university police sided with the men formerly belonging to the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity instead of those who were victims of the alleged harassment.
“The officers bonded with our offenders,” they “laughed at the situation,” and the officers “promised to talk to the chief of public safety to get them access to our house when finals week was over, shaking each and everyone one of their hands,” Luong claimed.
Bucknell, in their statement, called the campus police response “lacking in myriad ways” and said a separate firm would be investigating their response to the harassment.
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“We cannot erase the ugliness and subsequent trauma of last night’s transgression against the students of Fran’s House and, implicitly, many others, but we can commit to addressing it in a way that protects LGBTQ Bucknellians and better ensures their safety in the future,” President John Bravman, Provost Elisabeth Mermann-Jozwiak, and Nikki Young, the associate provost for equity and inclusive excellence, wrote.
