Sexual discrimination includes, but is not limited to:
Sexual Harassment
Sexual Harassment under Title IX is defined as unwelcome gender-based verbal or physical conduct and occurs when:
- Submission to, or toleration of, such conduct is made a term or condition of instruction, employment, or participation in other university activities;
- Submission to, or rejection of, such conduct is used as a basis for employment or education decisions affecting the individual; or
- Such conduct is severe, pervasive, and objectionably offensive such that it has the effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's education or employment performance.
Examples include: an attempt to coerce an unwilling person into a sexual relationship; to repeatedly subject a person to egregious, unwelcome sexual attention; to punish a refusal to comply with a sexual based request; to condition a benefit on submitting to sexual advances; sexual violence; intimate partner violence, stalking; gender-based bullying.
Non-Consenual Sexual Contact
Non-Consensual Sexual Contact is:
- any intentional sexual touching,
- however slight,
- with any object,
- by a man or a woman upon a man or a woman,
- that is without consent and/or by force.
Examples include: Intentional contact with the breasts, buttock, groin, or genitals, or touching another with any of these body parts, or making another touch you or themselves with or on any of these body parts; any intentional bodily contact in a sexual manner, though not involving contact with/of/by breasts, buttocks, groin, genitals, mouth or other orifice.
Non-Consensual Sexual Intercourse
Non-Consensual Sexual Intercourse is:
- any sexual intercourse
- however slight,
- with any object,
- by a man or woman upon a man or a woman,
- that is without consent and/or by force.
Examples include: vaginal and/or anal penetration by a penis, object, tongue or finger, and oral copulation (mouth to genital contact or genital to mouth contact), no matter how slight the penetration or contact.
Sexual Exploitation
Occurs when an individual takes non-consensual or abusive sexual advantage of another for his/her own advantage or benefit, or to benefit or advantage anyone other than the one being exploited, and that behavior does not otherwise constitute one of the other sexual discrimination offenses.
Examples of sexual exploitation include, but are not limited to:
- Invasion of sexual privacy;
- prostituting another;
- non-consensual video or audio-taping of sexual activity;
- going beyond the boundaries of consent (such as letting your friends hide in the closet to watch you having consensual sex);
- engaging in voyeurism (peeping Tom);
- knowingly transmitting an STI or HIV to another;
- Exposing one's genitals in non-consensual circumstances; inducing another to expose their genitals;
- Sexually-based stalking and/or bullying may also be forms of sexual exploitation
Additional Applicable Definitions
Consent
Consent is clear, knowing and voluntary. Consent is active, not passive. Silence, in and of itself, cannot be interpreted as consent. Consent can be given by words or actions, as long as those words or actions create mutually understandable clear permission regarding willingness to engage in (and the conditions of) sexual activity. Consent to any one form of sexual activity cannot automatically imply consent to any other forms of sexual activity. Previous relationships or prior consent cannot imply consent to future sexual acts.
Force
Force is the use of physical violence and/or imposing on someone physically to gain sexual access. Force also includes threats, intimidation (implied threats) and coercion that overcome resistance or produce consent ("Have sex with me or I'll hit you. Okay, don't hit me, I'll do what you want.").
Coercion
Coercion is unreasonable pressure for sexual activity. Coercive behavior differs from seductive behavior based on the type of pressure someone uses to get consent from another. When someone makes clear to you that they do not want sex, that they want to stop, or that they do not want to go past a certain point of sexual interaction, continued pressure beyond that point can be coercive.
Additional Information
There is no requirement that a party resists the sexual advance or request, but resistance is a clear demonstration of non-consent. The presence of force is not demonstrated by the absence of resistance. Sexual activity that is forced is by definition non-consensual, but non-consensual sexual activity is not by definition forced.
In order to give effective consent, one must be of legal age. Sexual activity with someone who one should know to be -- or based on the circumstances should reasonably have known to be -- mentally or physically incapacitated (by alcohol or other drug use, unconsciousness or blackout), constitutes a violation of this policy. Incapacitation is a state where someone cannot make rational, reasonable decisions because they lack the capacity to give knowing consent (e.g., to understand the "who, what, when, where, why or how" of their sexual interaction).
This also covers a person whose incapacity results from mental disability, sleep, involuntary physical restraint, or from the taking of rape drugs. Possession, use and/or distribution of any of these substances, including Rohypnol, Ketamine, GHB, Burundanga, etc. is prohibited, and administering one of these drugs to another individual is a violation. Use of alcohol or other drugs will never function as a defense for any behavior that violates this policy.
Visit 911rape.org for more information
The sexual orientation and/or gender identity of individuals engaging in sexual activity is not relevant to allegations under this policy. Sexual misconduct includes actions of any man or woman upon a man or woman in any combination, same gender or opposite gender.