College President Blames Sex Assaults On Too Much Alcohol And Casual Sex

Donald Eastman III, president of Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida, sent an email to all students saying assaults were "always preceded" by heavy consumption of alcohol, and that “virtue in the area of sexuality has its own reward.”

The president of Eckerd College in Florida college sent an email to all students saying that if they wanted to avoid being sexually assaulted, they should drink less and not engage in casual sex.

Students blasted Donald Eastman III's letter, viewed by BuzzFeed News, for being insensitive and not understanding the pervasive issue of sexual assault on campuses.

Sent Monday, the letter asked students to "do your part in helping this College and this culture address this nexus of problems by doing two relatively simple things."

Those things? Drink less – with a reference to Socrates – and stop having sex before marriage:

1. By limiting your own consumption of alcohol, and encouraging your friends to do the same. Socrates included wine at his Symposium, but he did not get drunk.

2. You can be thoughtful about the dramatic and often negative psychological effects that sexual activity without commitment can have. Virtue in the area of sexuality is its own reward, and has been held in high esteem in Western Culture for millennia because those who are virtuous are happier as well as healthier. No one's culture or character or understanding is improved by casual sex, and the physical and psychological risks to both genders are profound.

Students of the college told the Tampa Bay Times that the president's email blamed the victims of sexual assault.

Nineteen-year-old sophomore Marlene Heyning said: "I'm pretty pissed off. That's a pretty insensitive thing to say. Instead of teaching people that it's wrong to have casual sex and drink alcohol, how about teaching them that having sex with someone who says 'no' is not okay?"

Katie Wheeler, an 18-year-old sophomore, said: "I don't think casual sex is in any way related to sexual assault; the problem is people breaking boundaries and not learning respect from a young age."

An Eckerd alumnus has started a petition on Change.org, urging Eastman to "address the topic in a new light." It has received 267 signatures at the time of writing.

Eckerd is a liberal arts college with a Presbyterian affiliation. However, faith is not taught formally and all religions are permitted to be practiced on campus. The Tampa Bay Times reported that there have been over a dozen sexual offenses there since 2011.

Responding to the criticism in an interview with the Tampa Bay Times, Eastman insisted he was not engaging in victim-blaming, and did not believe that those who become victims of sexual assault should be blamed for what happens to them.

"I was trying to say that we would have a healthier and less dangerous campus if people drank less and took their sexual relations more seriously," he said.

He did, however, say he believed that those not taking sexual relations seriously enough could lead to assaults: "I think maybe that's right. I think that could be right."

He said that his words were written "with great affection and true, deep and lasting concern."

Since writing his email, Eastman said he had received around 12 responses as of Monday afternoon: "The ones that are unhappy are really unhappy and the ones that really appreciate the email thought it was great."

He said the negative responses said "don't tell us this is the fault of the victim, don't blame sexual assault on alcohol, don't blame sexual assault on casual sex. But so far, they haven't told me what you really ought to blame it on."

Dear Eckerd College students,As you know, the College has launched an educational and awareness campaign to attempt to minimize sexual harassment and assault in our community. The goal is to raise the awareness of all community members with respect to sexual harassment and assault and to help prevent those incidents by that increased awareness.You also know that our College is not alone in its concern about such behavior, principally among its students. And you know that these incidents are almost always preceded by consumption, often heavy consumption, of alcohol, often by everyone involved in them.You can do your part in helping this College and this culture address this nexus of problems by doing two relatively simple things:1. By limiting your own consumption of alcohol, and encouraging your friends to do the same. Socrates included wine at his Symposium, but he did not get drunk.2. You can be thoughtful about the dramatic and often negative psychological effects that sexual activity without commitment can have. Virtue in the area of sexuality is its own reward, and has been held in high esteem in Western Culture for millennia because those who are virtuous are happier as well as healthier. No one's culture or character or understanding is improved by casual sex, and the physical and psychological risks to both genders are profound.Every year at the end of the Eckerd College Commencement ceremony, I say to the graduating class, "I hope you feel not only well taught, but well loved. We will miss you." I mean every word of that. This open letter is written in that spirit – not as preachment, but with great affection and true, deep and lasting concern.As always, I am available for your responses or a visit to my office. I wish each of you good luck in your final weeks of the semester, and a happy, healthy, virtuous 2015.Sincerely,Donald R. Eastman IIIPresident

Topics in this article

Skip to footer