Canada: Famous Authors Sign Letter Questioning Due Process For Campus Sexual Assault Cases

Article here. Excerpt:

'Was novelist Steven Galloway’s dismissal from his university position justice for women, or a modern Salem witch hunt?

The former chair of the creative writing program at the University of British Columbia was fired in June following an investigation into multiple allegations of sexual harassment and other improprieties. This week, the Canadian literary world has been wracked with discord over the case following the publication of a scathing open letter to UBC signed by dozens of authors including Margaret Atwood, Yann Martel, Madeleine Thien and Michael Ondaatje.

The letter, reportedly circulated by author Joseph Boyden, calls attention to “growing evidence that the University acted irresponsibly in Professor Galloway’s case” and argues that as the case was widely publicized, “the situation requires public clarification.” The statement has drawn an explosive response, with many arguing it shows little concern for alleged victims and complainants.

Galloway had been publicly suspended in November 2015 for what the dean of arts termed “serious allegations.” News reports from the past year indicate allegations that include sexual assault, sexual harassment, inappropriate relationships with students, bullying, and even an incident in which he slapped a student, though the details remain fuzzy. The open letter argues that the university’s public memo and actions following his suspension created “a cloud of suspicion over Professor Galloway [...] severely damaging Professor Galloway’s reputation and affecting his health.”

The statement also criticizes UBC for a lack of transparency regarding the specific charges and notes that criminal charges have not been brought. Furthermore, the statement maintains, UBC has failed to make public the results of an independent investigation conducted by former BC Supreme Court Judge Mary Ellen Boyd, although “[b]oth a statement from the UBC Faculty Association and the report of an independent journalist who had access to the Boyd report have since revealed that all but one of the allegations investigated, including the most serious one, were unsubstantiated.”'

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