PRESS RELEASE: Harvard Students Occupy University Building

Harvard Students Occupy Administrative Building —  “No More Comaroff, No More Complicity”

Press Contact: Will Sutton, suttonwilliamm@gmail.com / 617-529-5676 (text preferred)

CAMBRIDGE, MA – Demanding justice for survivors and the removal of serial sexual harasser John Comaroff from the classroom, over 50 Harvard students from across the University occupied a central administrative building today. In the short term, students asserted they would leave if Dean Rakesh Khurana or Dean Gay sent a college-wide email declaring a state of emergency to address the sexual violence crisis on campus. Looking to the future, students promised to keep coming back until Comaroff resigns and Harvard ends its complicity in harassment, misogyny, and discrimination.  

“Harvard is taking the side of powerful sexual predators over the students it promises to protect, and this institution plans to use its name, money, and power to get away with it,” said Austin Siebold ‘23. “Every student deserves a safe campus, and the University’s protection of sexual predators among the student body and faculty is abhorrent and inconsistent with their supposed commitment to justice and equality. Justice for survivors is not too much to ask, and if the administration won’t act, we will.”

The first demand, that Professor Comaroff resign, comes over a year after he was found guilty of violating the University’s sexual harassment and professional conduct policies. This finding was revealed despite Comaroff’s efforts, as detailed in a recent complaint, to undermine the integrity of the fact-finding process, including by threatening accusers with professional retaliation. He continues to face several open allegations dating as far back as the 1970s, where he was reportedly seen regularly around undergraduate dormitories at the University of Chicago. Despite this record, Harvard administration welcomed him back to the classroom this past fall, where he was met with student protests.

“John Comaroff’s continued presence at Harvard undermines the conditions of academic freedom and intellectual autonomy that we all deserve,” said Rachael Dziaba ‘26. “His attempts to silence and intimidate students makes clear the threat he poses not only to open discourse and intellectual vitality but also to the physical safety and careers of his students.”

The second demand, that Harvard reform its Title IX and Office of Dispute Resolution (ODR) systems to facilitate true justice for survivors, comes after months of protests calling for an end to Harvard’s enabling of abusers more broadly. As participants discussed in speeches and remarks during the action, several policies — such as an independent rape crisis center, robust prevention efforts, real recourse and independent Title IX panelists, and comprehensive, survivor-centric sexual healthcare — would enable Harvard to work toward the fulfillment of the promises it makes to its student body. To date, although other highly ranked universities have adopted similar policies, Harvard has remained silent about many of these calls, and actively resisted some.

“Students are offering to help Harvard align its policies with its duties. The university has a choice to make: will it continue its complicity, or will it listen and change?” said Will Sutton ‘23.

The protest comes just two days after the US District Court dealt Harvard a major blow over its handling of sexual harassment among its faculty. In a recent lawsuit, Harvard was accused of obtaining a plaintiff’s private therapy notes in connection with an ODR investigation and distributing them to Comaroff without the plaintiff’s consent. In response, Harvard argued that it had not violated any privacy laws and sought to dismiss the claim. Describing the University’s arguments as “unpersuasive,” Judge Judith Dein ruled that the matter should proceed towards trial. Judge Dein’s full decision reveals that Harvard acted according to unclear policies and ambiguous information, with its investigators breaching a survivor’s privacy for no defensible reason.  

“We know that the university does not want to admit to wrongdoing by firing Comaroff now,” said Siebold. “Harvard fears strengthening the case in the lawsuit against them, which is why we are calling on him to resign, with the knowledge that this will no longer be a campus where he is welcome.” 

The protest occurred at the same time that the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers (HUCTW) was picketing outside of Massachusetts Hall for a fair contract. HUCTW’s current contract includes independent investigations for harassment; in addition to refusing to pay fair wages, Harvard has been trying to claw back this promise in recent negotiations.

“We know that our university can do better,” said Annabelle Finlayson ‘23. “That’s why we’ll be back until Harvard acts.