National walkouts are planned for Thursday as college students, advocates, and survivors of sexual abuse demonstrate in response to high-profile rape allegations against former male students at Cornell University.
A former female student filed a lawsuit against the school, a fraternity, and seven males after she alleged she was drugged and then sexually assaulted at a frat party.
From USA Today:
Survivors of sexual abuse, students and advocates will hold walkouts, rallies and vigils in communities and on college campuses in more than 40 states on Oct. 8 in response to Cornell University’s handling of allegations that a student was gang-raped by fraternity members in 2024.
The more than 150 expected nationwide events are titled #StopSexualViolence: From the Frat House to the White House National Day of Action. The organizers include Women's March, Feminist, Feminist Generation and me too International.
Students on more than 50 campuses are expected to walk out of class, Women’s March executive director Rachel O’Leary Carmona told USA TODAY.
The actions follow the filing of a Sept. 16 lawsuit by a young woman known anonymously as Jane Doe. The lawsuit alleges she was gang-raped on Oct. 19, 2024, by seven members of Cornell’s Chi Phi fraternity while she was too intoxicated to consent and after being pressured into taking ketamine.
All have denied wrongdoing and have not been charged with crimes. Their fraternity, Chi Phi, has been barred from campus.
Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff has called the assault allegations "deeply disturbing" and "a defining moment" in Cornell’s history. On Oct. 6, the university announced it had retained Sally Yates, a veteran prosecutor and a former acting U.S. attorney general, to review its sexual assault policies and procedures.
Today on “The Intelligence”: the “Cornell 7” rape case has highlighted the role of Title IX, a civil rights law intended—but largely failing—to protect campus assault victims in America. Listen now https://t.co/JNFvpFLgTd https://t.co/9yLIE98Af7
— The Economist (@TheEconomist) October 7, 2026
The former student, identified in court documents as Jane Doe, filed the lawsuit in September. Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten declined to file charges against the male students in November 2024, pointing out that the female student’s statement “described her participation in drug use and sexual conduct as voluntary, conscious, and consensual.”
However, a campus police interview transcript that Van Houten had not seen includes Jane Doe saying, “I can say with 100 percent confidence I was raped.”
I asked Michael Tracey twice what the public learned from trying to out the Cornell Jane Doe. He didn't name one thing. Then he turned it on me. https://t.co/2TQn0dVjDC
— Tara Palmeri (@tarapalmeri) October 8, 2026
The lawsuit garnered national attention and sparked discussions about sexual abuse on college campuses. Cornell University recently released the findings of a study showing a disturbing increase in nonconsensual sexual encounters.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul appointed Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor to look into potential criminal charges. “New information has raised serious questionsa bout how this case was handled, and I’ve lost faith in the Tompkins County D.A.’s ability to fairly oversee it,” the governor said.
No criminal charges have been filed in this case. Former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates was enlisted to look into the university’s handling of Jane Doe’s allegations as well.
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