Morehouse College Assault Allegations Spark Spelman Student Protest

This story discusses sexual assault. If you or someone you know needs support, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at (800) 656-4673, or access online support at online.rainn.org.

Accusations of sexual misconduct by a prominent Morehouse College fraternity member are roiling the Atlanta University Center, and now Spelman College students are speaking out.

Earlier this month, a Spelman student posted accusations on social media alleging she had been sexually assaulted by a Morehouse student on Oct 6. In numerous posts across Instagram and Substack, the college student shared details of subsequent harassment and said she received little support after filing a complaint with Spelman’s Title IX office and the Atlanta Police Department. 

When reached for comment Thursday, Spelman’s media relations official said, “Our statement has been posted online and we have nothing further to add.”

Spelman College, Morehouse College, and the Morehouse School of Medicine issued a joint statement last week on their social media accounts saying they were aware of the concerns about sexual assault circulating in the AUC community.   

“We take all reports regarding sexual misconduct seriously, and we remain dedicated to the safety and well-being of every student,” the statement reads. “Sexual misconduct, nonconsensual behavior, online harassment and cyberbullying have absolutely no place on our campuses. The safety, physical well-being, and dignity of our students are paramount.”

The posts also shared public safety, counseling, and reporting resources.

For some on campus, these statements, and a subsequent release from Morehouse’s Student Government Association condemning sexual assault, missed the mark.

In response, Spelman sophomore Rai-Elle Ingram organized a sit-in Tuesday night at the AUC’s Robert W. Woodruff Library with support from Spelman’s chapters of the NAACP, National Council of Negro Women, and Sisters in Sync. 

“I was genuinely enraged,” Alexa Norman, a Spelman junior, told the Spelman Blueprint. “I was upset because these are already resources we know about.”

Several speakers at the protest used red paint prints on their clothing and bodies to call out sexual violence.

Myana Garrison, a junior studying health science at Spelman, told Capital B Atlanta on Wednesday that the statement from Morehouse’s student government was important, but she wants to see the institution “hold its students accountable.” 

“Remove them from these positions of power. Take them off their pedestals. Take their financial aid. Do something. Collaborate with the APD if need be. Title IX is here. We have to listen to the concerns of the community,” Garrison said.

She also alleged a long history of Morehouse College sweeping sexual assault allegations “under the rug.” She said it shouldn’t take a well-known student being accused to get Morehouse and its student body to speak out against sexual assault. 

“That’s the only reason why we’re talking about it right now is because [the student] is a part of this fraternity … because he’s this person’s son. I think that … is a problem within itself,” she said. “We give people too much power, in my opinion, on this campus, and that power then turns into we’re harming people and thinking that we can get away with it.” 

For Steven Tyson, a junior majoring in business administration at Morehouse, he was “appalled” at how long it took his own SGA to address the matter and felt like the schools’ joint statements sounded “AI-generated.” 

Tyson told Capital B Atlanta he wants Morehouse to address the broader issue of sexual assault.

“There’s this adage that describes the entitlement and pride and success of a Morehouse man, which goes, ‘You can tell a Morehouse man, but you can’t tell him much,’” Tyson said. “And apparently, that includes the word ‘no.’ We believe because we’re draped in maroon and white, that we can just ignore consent, and that we have the keys to just enter other people’s souls and alter women’s bodies, but it doesn’t work like that.”

The social media response to Morehouse’s joint statement was also swift and searing.

Notaid_4n posted: We’ve been here before why is it difficult to hold our students the same standard of morals that we teach. 

Sxrgripp wrote: how many years in a row have you used this copypasta

Maddy._thedrummer shared: Can yall stop making posts about it and actually take action????

Adding to campus concerns, the accuser also alleged on Instagram that she was being harassed by her attacker’s fraternity members, their sister sorority, and leaders from other campus organizations. 

The president and vice president of the Spelman chapter of the NAACP issued their own statement “addressing community concerns that members of their executive board participated in harmful actions against a survivor.” 

“We are aware of the concerns and allegations circulating online involving members of our executive board,” the statement read.

The organization said it is “actively addressing the situation internally” and included a five-point call to action: center survivors, demand institutional accountability, embody our values, sustain advocacy, and build collective solidarity.

While Tyson said he’s committed to taking action by speaking about “misogyny and sexism” on Oct. 29 at Morehouse’s Crown Form, a mandatory weekly lecture series that students must attend to graduate, he acknowledged trust has been broken between students and their institutions.

“You need to regain our trust because right now they don’t have mine,” Tyson said. “They don’t have my trust at all. I can’t feel safe at all when it comes to this rampant issue of sexual violence.”

Garrison said she and her fellow Spelman students will continue to protest and demand action. She hopes more Morehouse students will do the same. 

“Silence and complacency will not create change. If you’re against something that someone did, you have to talk about it,” Garrison said. “You have to yell about it. You have to be upset about it, and you have to educate yourself about it.” 

When Capital B Atlanta reached out to the Atlanta Police Department, a spokesperson confirmed there is a sexual assault incident report filed by the accuser. 

The assault allegations at the AUC come on the heels of an explosive investigation by the Cornell University student newspaper into an allegded gang rape of a female student by seven members of the school’s Phi Chi fraternity in 2024.

Read More: 

• Clark Atlanta Homecoming Brings Generations Together
• Spelman and Morehouse Top New HBCU Rankings

This is a developing story.

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