WALTER RUSSELL MEAD ON DISCRIMINATION AGAINST MALE STUDENTS ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES.

At least 30 instutitions, including Yale, Cornell, and Stanford, now employ these new regulations. Data on false accusations are a mixed bag. Some studies claim that 2-8 percent of rape reports are false, whereas others insist that the numbers are much higher. What is clear, however, is that this reduction in safeguards has led to serious mistakes. A University of North Dakota student, convicted of sexual assault and kicked off campus, was recently allowed back when the charges against him were proven false and his accuser charged with making a false report. Charges of rape against a male student at Cornell were later thrown out when police discovered “irrefutable evidence” (in the form of video footage) of his innocence. And a widely publicized case at Brown University, involving the daughter of a wealthy alum, implicated a number of university administrators in misconduct to secure a conviction against the accused male student. . . .

Accusations of sexual violence and sexual assault should never be taken lightly. But neither should accusations be taken as truth. America is a country based on rights and fair procedure. Those accused of serious offenses must not be deprived of their rights, and college authorities cannot, in their commendable desire to protect female students, deny male students their basic rights. Both male and female students must feel that their rights will be protected and that they will be treated equally by their university should conflict arise.

No matter what happens, communities of young people in their teens and twenties are going to witness the consequences of poor judgment and crossed signals. The old norm, in which victims were expected to shut up and move on, was deeply unjust for young women. Feminists are absolutely right to want that to change. But the reality is that creating a safe and welcoming atmosphere on campus involves more than coming down like a ton of bricks on any young man accused of crossing the line. It involves much more adult leadership and guidance about responsible sexual behavior, and it involves a deeper commitment to the moral leadership and development of youth than most academics are comfortable thinking about.

But too many stories about men being abused by kangaroo courts, and higher education’s gender gap, already a problem, will become much worse. Do universities want to become finishing schools for girls? And if enough men opt out, they’ll have more trouble attracting the women, too.