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What is sexual harassment?
Sexual Harassment is any unwanted verbal or physical behavior
of a sexual nature, which interferes with one's academic performance
or work environment. It is the use of authority to emphasize the
sexuality or sexual identity of an individual in a manner, which
prevents the individual's access to the educational benefits,
or opportunities of UHM. Some people think that sexual harassment
isn't a big deal, but it is a big deal. It is illegal.
Key elements to remember:
- the behavior can be
verbal, physical or visual
- the behavior is unwanted
- the behavior is sexual
in nature, or based on gender
- the behavior has either
the purpose or effect of altering the individuals access to
their education or employment.
Title IX:
Sexual
harassment is prohibited by Title IX, a federal law that prohibits
sex discrimination in education. Recently, the Supreme Court issued
two decisions that specifically address sexual harassment of students.
These decisions state that the school is responsible for student-on-student
or teacher-to-student harassment when:
- The harassment is
so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it can
be said to deprive the victim of access to educational opportunities
or benefits provided by the university.
- The university has
control over the context in which the harassment arose.
- The university had
control over the harasser.
- The university had
actual knowledge of the harassment and responded with deliberate
indifference to the complaint.
- The school has a responsibility
to respond regardless of whether or not they had "notice",
if the harassment took place in the context of the employee's
provision of aid, benefits, or services
- The school is responsible
for taking action, if the conduct is sufficiently serious to
deny or limit a student's ability to participate in or benefit
from the program and if the school knows or should have known
about the conduct
The University of
Hawai'i, defines sexual harassment in Executive
Policy E1.203:
Unwelcome sexual advances, or requests for sexual
favors, or other physical or expressive behavior of a sexual nature
when:
- Submission to such
conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition
of an individual's employment or educational benefits or services;
- Submission to or rejection
of such conduct is used as a basis for employment or academic
decisions affecting the individual; or
- Such conduct has the
purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's
professional or academic performance or creates an intimidating,
hostile, or offensive educational environment; or
- Such conduct is sufficiently
severe or pervasive as to alter the conditions of an individual's
employment and create an abusive working environment.
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