‘Raped at Spelman’ Twitter Account Shares Story of Horrifying Rape, Sparks Discussion About Rape Culture at HBCUs

A Twitter account with the handle ‘@RapedAtSpelman‘ appeared online less than 24 hours ago and tells the story of a young woman who says she was the victim of rape at Spelman College by four Morehouse College students.

In a series of tweets, the anonymous Spelman freshman recounts the night she went to a party with friends and ended up getting sexually assaulted by the four men. She also details the steps she took after the incident to report the rape and how administration handled the process.

Her story sent shockwaves through the Spelman and Morehouse communtity and spawned several hashtags, including #RapedAtSpelman, #RapedAtMorehouse, and #RapedByMorehouse.

Students are now using the hashtags to share their stories, amplify their voices and shed light on the issue of ‘rape culture.’ Protests are also happening across the Spelman campus.

Back in January, Buzzfeed published a story with reports of rape from both past and present Spelman students dating back to the mid 1990s. Since the feature went public, Spelman and Morehouse administrators announced initiatives to help combat the issue of campus rape and mishandling allegations.

In response to the allegations from ‘@RapedAtSpelman,’ the school says they’re investigating.

“Our hearts go out to this student and I want to personally offer her our full support and assistance,” Spelman President Dr. Mary Schmidt Campbell said in a statement provided to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“We are a family at Spelman and we will not tolerate any episode of sexual violence,” she wrote. “No student should ever have to suffer and endure the experience she has recounted on social media. Spelman is conducting a full and thorough review of these events.”

The school did not immediately say whether the alleged victim had filed a police report or other complaint. They did not specify whether they knew who the alleged victim was. The tweets did not say when the alleged assault took place.

[via HBCU Digest]