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Spelman Student Says She Was Raped by Morehouse Students — Asked What She Was Wearing — Blames School for Victim Shaming

Scandal surfaced Monday at one of the country’s most beloved historically Black institutions: Spelman College.

A self-professed Spelman College student anonymously posted a series of tweets on May 2, using the Twitter handle @RapedAtSpelman. The posts contained troubling details of a gang rape allegedly committed by four Morehouse College students.

“It’s sad I have to create a page to express myself rather than tweeting from my real account because AUC students blame & bash victims,” the first tweet read.

The freshman, who said she would not return to the school next year, said the incident happened at a party she attended with her friends.

“…there were a lot of people there and it was really fun so we decided to drink with the upperclassmen. I was drunk but that doesn’t mean I forgot about what happened.”

The student said she went to an upstairs bathroom to “throw up” and was met by four Morehouse students when she opened the door. She claims the men took her to another room where they each raped her.

“After it happened I went to find my friends who had already left the party so I had to walk back to campus by myself. When I got there I went to public safety to do a report and I was sent to the hospital for a rape kit.”

She said Spelman officials followed up with her a month later.

“When I got to the meeting with the Dean and Public Safety they asked me what was I wearing, why did I separate from my friends, & why was I drinking under age. The Dean also said that Spelman & Morehouse are brother & sister so I should give them a pass.”

The student said she became so depressed after the meeting she attempted suicide and began to self-harm, leading her to the decision to part ways with the college.

She ended the posts with, “You can NEVER say Morehouse has their sisters back if they are just going to force her on it.”

The tweets caused a firestorm on social media, with many Atlanta University Center alumni reaching out to @RapedAtSpelman on Twitter.

11Alive News reports that supporters held a protest on Tuesday evening. @RapedAtSpelman appeared to thank the attendees in a post last night. “THANK YOU TO EVERYONE FOR THE SUPPORT AND THE BEAUTIFUL PROTEST TODAY. I WAS THERE.”

Mainstream media outlets BuzzFeed, TeenVogue and RollingOut picked up the story on Wednesday.

Spelman College President Dr. Mary Schmidt Campbell personally offered the student the “full support and assistance” of the college.

“Our hearts go out to this student…We are a family at Spelman and we will not tolerate any episode of sexual violence,” Campbell said in a statement. “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.”

Morehouse College Spokeswoman Cathy Clark Tyler said the college did not find out about the allegations until Monday.

“We are looking into it, but we are unaware of any police report,” Tyler said.

A statement posted to the Morehouse website on May 3 read, “Today, there is a trending discussion about an alleged sexual assault on social media involving Morehouse College. The allegations are quite serious and Morehouse openly welcomes the reporting of any such allegation for a full and swift investigation.”

Atlanta Black Star was unable to reach the student for comment.

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