Amulya Mandava, Lilia Kilburn, Margaret Czerwienski.Photo: Lena Warnke Photography
In a separate statement, Harvard University said they disputed the allegations made in the lawsuit.
Comaroff was placed on unpaid administrative leave in January, prior to the lawsuit’s filing, according to school newspaperThe Harvard Crimson.(He had previously been placed on paid administrative leave in 2020, after the paper first reported on the students' allegations against the professor.)
However, the students allege that the school “issued limited findings that downplayed the gravity of the conduct alleged,” according to apress releasefrom their law firm.
Additionally, the students claim that the school’s process of investigating Title IX complaints “is designed to protect star faculty and allow Harvard to downplay any credible accounts of sexual misconduct.”
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The complaint includes allegations that Comaroff “repeatedly and forcibly” kissed Kilburn, groped her in public and made a “graphic description of her own imagined rape and murder.”
He also denied allegations that he kissed or touched her “inappropriately at any time,” noting that Harvard’s own investigation did not find that any evidence supported those claims.
Harvard University.William B. Plowman/Getty Images
“The findings that Harvard did make in this case are the tip of the iceberg,” he added. “Our Complaint sets out a long history of Harvard’s failure to protect students, and we look forward to showing that pattern in court and before a jury.”
source: people.com
