Columbia University rape accusation controversy

In April 2013, Emma Sulkowicz, an American fourth-year visual arts major at Columbia University in New York City, filed a complaint with Columbia University requesting expulsion of fellow fourth-year student and German national, Paul Nungesser, alleging he had raped Sulkowicz in her[a] dorm room on August 27, 2012.[1] Nungesser was found not responsible by a university inquiry.

In May 2014, Sulkowicz filed a report against Nungesser with the New York Police Department (NYPD), who did not pursue charges.[2][3] The district attorney's office interviewed both students, but did not pursue charges, citing lack of reasonable suspicion.[3] Sulkowicz declined to pursue criminal charges any further,[4][5] and stated that NYPD officers were dismissive and had mistreated her.[5][6]

After Columbia declined to take action against Nungesser, Sulkowicz produced a work of performance art entitled Mattress Performance (Carry That Weight) as a senior thesis, which involved Sulkowicz carrying a 50-pound dorm mattress on campus to represent the painful burden rape victims carry throughout daily life, and in protest of what Sulkowicz described as Columbia University's mishandling of the sexual assault complaint.[7] Nungesser called Sulkowicz's allegations untrue, citing as evidence behavior Nungesser said was counterintuitive, such as friendly texts Sulkowicz sent Nungesser days after the alleged attack occurred,[8] and described the mattress piece as an act of bullying intended to force him to leave Columbia.[4][9]

In April 2015, Nungesser filed a Title IX gender discrimination lawsuit against Columbia, its board of trustees, university president Lee Bollinger, and Sulkowicz's supervising art professor Jon Kessler, alleging that Columbia had facilitated gender-based harassment by allowing Sulkowicz to receive course credit for the performance.[3][10][11] Federal District Court Judge Gregory H. Woods dismissed the lawsuit[12] but allowed Nungesser to refile an amended suit,[12] which was settled by Columbia in July 2017.[13] In 2017, the university issued a statement acknowledging that Nungesser experienced a very difficult time, promised to keep its gender-based misconduct policies fair, and settled Nungesser's lawsuit under undisclosed terms.[14]


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  1. ^ Chapman, Isabelle (February 3, 2015). "Columbia student says he didn't rape Emma Sulkowicz". AOL.com. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference waponun was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b c Kutner, Max (April 28, 2015). "The Anti-Mattress Protest: Paul Nungesser's Lawsuit Against Columbia University". Newsweek. Archived from the original on May 10, 2016. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
  4. ^ a b Van Syckle, Katie (January 20, 2015). "Alleged Columbia Rapist 'Dismayed and Disappointed' by Accuser's SOTU Invitation". New York. Archived from the original on August 9, 2016. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
  5. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference VanSyckle4September2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Robbins, Christopher (May 18, 2014). "Spurned By Columbia, Student Says NYPD Mistreated Her While Reporting Rape". Gothamist. Archived from the original on May 24, 2015. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
  7. ^ MacDonald, Soraya Nadia (October 29, 2014). "It's hard to ignore a woman toting a mattress everywhere she goes, which is why Emma Sulkowicz is still doing it". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 26, 2017. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference DailyBeast was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Neumeister, Larry (April 24, 2015). "Correction: Columbia University-Gender Bias Suit Story". ABC News. Archived from the original on April 26, 2015. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  11. ^ Shapiro, T. Rees (July 13, 2017). "Columbia University settles Title IX lawsuit with former student involving 'mattress girl' case". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on August 26, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  12. ^ a b Kingkade, Tyler (March 12, 2016). "Lawsuit Against Columbia Over Mattress Protest Is Dismissed". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on May 19, 2016. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  13. ^ Taylor, Kate (July 15, 2017). "Columbia Settles With Student Cast as a Rapist in Mattress Art Project". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 15, 2017. Retrieved July 15, 2017.
  14. ^ Grace, Veronica (July 1, 2017). "Columbia settles Nungesser's Title IX lawsuit". Columbia Daily Spectator. Archived from the original on July 13, 2017. Retrieved July 15, 2017.