As a Boston College nursing school graduate and as a former co-news editor (’65), as well as a fervent supporter of The Heights, I am writing to express my outrage at the leniency of token “sanctions” that the BC administration has given as its response to the students identified as the perpetrators of the racist, misogynistic, and destructive behavior as reported in the Feb. 16 edition of The Boston Globe. Such an administrative response is outrageously lenient, and it virtually “sanctions” more of this same repulsive behavior, now and into the foreseeable future of Boston College.
Expulsion is the correct lesson to be taught here to the perpetrators, and also to the entire BC community which needs to understand just how serious the personal harm that has been done is. The victims of this behavior will carry these scars of hatred, racism, and disrespect forever in their personal lives. Now, the BC administration wants to pile on to that personal pain by allowing the perpetrators to continue to attend classes on the campus where their victims live and study.
Expulsion is the minimum remedy simply because the administration cannot justify why these perpetrators should have any moral or legal right to continue to live among the BC community where other innocent women and their current victims would have to face them and their past hateful actions on a daily basis on campus.
Neither mere platitudes of “we’ll do better,” nor forums on diversity will even begin to approach the correct response which should be forthcoming immediately. Associate Vice President for University Communications Jack Dunn is quoted that the University “has zero tolerance” for such actions, but so far “zero” is as far as his version of equitable justice has gone for these female victims of hate, racism, and intolerance.
Expelling these repulsive students is the only acceptable response that can be made credibly by the BC administration on behalf of the entire BC community, not only as amends for those permanently and deeply wounded women of color, but also as an important moral lesson for the entire student body.
I ask the editors of The Heights to uphold the publication’s long commitment to the basic moral standard of anti-racism which the University administration does not appear to be willing to observe as it follows its own broken moral compass in this matter.
Please, stand up, and speak the truth to power.
Featured Graphic by Olivia Charbonneau/ Heights Editor
