George Mason University law students are decrying the school’s decision to hire Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh for a summer course, saying the sexual assault allegations that surfaced during his confirmation process disqualify him for a position at the university.
Last month, the university announced that Kavanaugh would be brought on as a visiting professor, lecturing a constitutional law class abroad in England. A group of students, calling themselves “Mason 4 Survivors,” have organized petitions, rallies, and urged students to attend university board meetings to voice their opposition to Kavanaugh’s hiring.
“As a survivor of sexual assault, this decision has really impacted me negatively,” one student said at a university board meeting last week. “It has affected my mental health knowing that an abuser will be part of our faculty.”
The petition, which was started by the group last month, urges the university’s administration to reverse its hiring of Kavanaugh for the summer course and demands a formal apology from the university to the student body, particularly to students on campus who are victims of sexual assault. Additionally, Mason 4 Survivors demands the university make public all the documents Kavanaugh has submitted to the university throughout the hiring process, including “emails, donor agreements, and contracts.”
“There is a historic amount of institutional negligence on your part to support survivors of sexual assault and the student body as a whole, which has bred a sense of mistrust and suffering within the Mason community and allies,” the petition says before listing its demands.
More than 3,000 students have signed the petition. Parents and alumni of the university have also threatened to stop donating back to the university if Kavanaugh isn’t removed.
Students have also organized university-wide protests over the last weeks, with some chanting “Kick Kavanaugh off campus!”
The university’s president has remained steadfast in his support for hiring Kavanaugh, saying that adding a high-profile lecturer such as a Supreme Court justice bolsters the school’s connections with the Supreme Court and offers students a unique and valuable experience.,
“I respect the views of people who disagreed with Justice Kavanaugh’s Senate confirmation due to questions raised about his sexual conduct in high school. But he was confirmed and is now a sitting Justice. The law school has determined that the involvement of a U.S. Supreme Court Justice contributes to making our law program uniquely valuable for our students. And I accept their judgment,” University President Angel Cabrera said in a statement last month. “This decision, controversial as it may be, in no way affects the university’s ongoing efforts to eradicate sexual violence from our campuses. We remain firmly committed to this goal, and I want to encourage students who feel strongly about sexual assault prevention at Mason to continue to raise their voices and help us move forward.”
Four women accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault during his confirmation process last year. An investigation launched by the FBI at the request of Congress could not corroborate the allegations made against Kavanaugh, and the Senate confirmed Kavanaugh. The vote was largely along party lines, with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., voting in favor of the nomination and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, voting “present.”
