The Great Pretenders: Undocumented students and college sexual assault

Recently, The New York Times published an article applauding certain colleges and universities for publicly discussing their methods of financing undocumented students’ educations. These efforts are a small step in righting a history of undocumented people’s disenfranchisement in this country. However, when I read the article, my immediate reaction was fear—undocumented students are in grave danger when they set foot on America’s college campuses.

Our universities are a breeding ground for sexual violence. One in 5 women will experience an attempted sexual assault before she receives her college diploma. Numerous studies, articles, and even a new documentary, “The Hunting Ground,” expose the prevalence of sexual violence on our campuses and the deliberate mishandling of cases by college presidents and administrations. As a college activist, I frequently shared Angie Epifano’s experience with Amherst College as a case study for how college administrations can fail their students. After her rape, Angie experienced a series of calculated administrative actions designed to shame and deter her from pursuing justice. She ultimately left the college, while her rapist graduated with honors.

Amherst College failed Angie, a white young woman who had access to the media to tell her story. How can we trust universities to address sexual violence when the victim is already marginalized by her citizenship status?

In our society, undocumented immigrants are seen as unwelcome and their experiences are routinely ignored. Nationally, undocumented women encounter sexual violence at the same rate as other women, but are significantly less likely to seek out help after a sexual assault. In the White House’s 2014 study on sexual assault and rape in America, the government explicitly acknowledges the “unique challenges” undocumented women face in pursuing justice due to a fear of deportation.

The fear of discovery follows undocumented students when they leave for college. Undocumented students who experience sexual violence have no recourse for justice other than the school’s judicial system. They are unlikely to go to the police for fear of having to provide a social security number. They cannot go to the hospital for a rape kit because of the fear of having to provide documentation. If colleges fail undocumented victims, they are effectively telling victims that they do not matter—that they do not deserve justice.

The New York Times specifically references the efforts of New York University and Franklin & Marshall College in financing the educations of undocumented students. Franklin & Marshall is currently one of the 94 schools being investigated by the Department of Education for Title IX violations and a recent Al Jazeera investigation found that NYU, like all other NYC campuses, was guilty of mishandling rape cases.

Universities are just pretending to help undocumented students succeed. Universities must make deliberate administrative changes and pursue the eradication of rape culture. Colleges must put in a place a fair judicial process for undocumented women, as well as for all college students.

Header image credit: Peoples World/Flickr