Stanford University is facing backlash after removing the word “survivor” from its terminology for sexual assault cases.
University officials said the change was intended to maintain neutrality because the term can be seen as presuming that an allegation is valid before a case has been resolved.
Stanford’s Title IX office is also dropping “Sexual Harassment/Assault Response & Education,” or “SHARE,” from its name. It will now be called the “Title IX & Title VI Office.”
Pelagia Martin, a former SHARE student who has identified herself as a sexual assault victim, told The Stanford Daily that the office replaced “survivor” with “impacted student.” She resigned from her SHARE position following the change.
Martin also said the office would stop participating in several sexual assault-related events, including “Take Back the Night.”
Michele Dauber, an emerita law professor at Stanford, criticized the decision, arguing that the revised language diminishes the experiences of victims and other students affected by sexual violence.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Zohran Mamdani Misses Funeral for Nine Homeless New Yorkers Who Died in Freezing Cold
Patrick Dunkley, Stanford’s vice provost for Institutional Equity, Access and Community, told the student newspaper that the word “survivor” would remain in educational programming. However, he said “impacted student” would be used in future cases to signal the office’s neutral position while investigations are ongoing.
“The Title IX & Title VI Office continues to refine its focus on supporting and educating our community on a range of harassment and discrimination experiences, and responding fairly and with care to reported violations,” Dunkley said in response to the criticism.
Martin rejected that explanation, calling the policy a “direct attack” on her credibility and “therefore a blatant dismissal of a survivor’s voice by Patrick Dunkley and the Title IX Office.”
The dispute comes months after an armed man attacked and sexually assaulted a female jogger near Stanford’s campus, leaving students and residents frightened.
The March incident reportedly began when the suspect grabbed the woman and forced her into a secluded area beside a house.
