LSE threatens women speaking out on sexual misconduct

Content warning: sexual misconduct 

When women at the London School of Economics (LSE) spoke out about sexual misconduct at the university, the LSE didn’t offer them support. It threatened them with disciplinary action.

This response is all too predictable. Last year, five women came forward to make formal complaints of sexual misconduct against a senior professor at this top London university. But instead of supporting them, the university botched an investigation and kept him in post.

Good Law Project is helping one of those women take action against the LSE over the way it bungled her complaint, failing to interview those who could back up her story, and its failure to keep her safe on campus.

We’re gathering evidence so we can name this sexual predator. And we’ve also offered legal help to anyone at the university who has suffered intimidation either from him or this broken institution.

But when staff and students shared details of this offer online, they received a barrage of emails from the university threatening disciplinary action.

One student who was summoned to a disciplinary meeting said the university is “complicit in enabling” sexual misconduct.

“You feel like you’re being watched,” she said, “but what have I done wrong? I’ve advocated for people who have been harmed, and now I’ve been harmed in the process. I am being disciplined and intimidated by both the institution and him. It’s incredibly stressful.”

After discussing our campaign during this meeting, the university has now dropped disciplinary action against this student.

But this isn’t finished until the LSE listens to women on campus and stops protecting this sexual predator.

• We’re supporting staff and students who want to speak out. Anything you can give will help us stop sexual misconduct at the LSE.