Brooklyn College professor: Sexual assault is a rite of passage in reference to Kavanaugh questioning

October 4, 2018 By Stephanie Kotsikonas Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Brooklyn College. AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews

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A post on a Brooklyn College professor’s personal blog sparked criticism this week after he argued that committing sexual assault is a rite of passage for boys in response to last Thursday’s hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

Mitchell Langbert dismissed Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s accusations against Kavanaugh as “spin-the-bottle crimes.”

“If someone did not commit sexual assault in high school,” Langbert wrote, “then he is not a member of the male sex.”

The post continues, “The Kavanaugh hearing is a travesty, and if the Republicans are going to allow the sissy party to use this travesty to stop conservatism, then it is time found a new political party.”

After students caught wind of the piece, Langbert responded on his blog and claimed that the post was a satirical observation written in the style of Jonathan Swift’s 1729 “A Modest Proposal” in which Swift suggests Irish parents eat their children in order to combat poverty.

“I was surprised to learn that some readers took me literally, claiming that I advocate rape,” Langbert said in his response. “This in turn has resulted in a demonstration against me at Brooklyn College.”

Anne Lopes, Brooklyn College’s provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, wrote on the college’s Facebook page that although she found the post “obviously abhorrent,” Langbert is protected by the First Amendment.

She also stated that the school is planning a forum to share and discuss the community’s concerns.

Although Langbert claimed that his post was not meant to be taken seriously, he believes that the allegations against Kavanaugh are unfair.

“Given that it is unclear that Kavanaugh did a thing, the defamation that he has suffered at the hands of the media is a disgrace,” he wrote. “Intolerance of and defamation of anyone who does not toe the big government line are ongoing threats to freedom. The humiliation that Judge Kavanaugh has suffered is a disgrace.”

At press time, Langbert did not respond to the Brooklyn Eagle’s request for comment.