The Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology at CEU stands united in condemning sexual harassment, gender discrimination and all forms of harassment, discrimination and abuse entrenched in academic institutions and practices. We are committed to consolidating the university and our department as safe and nurturing institutional spaces for the professional development and personal well-being of our members. This includes addressing the negative impact on our community of high-profile court cases such as the one brought against Harvard by three of the university’s anthropology graduate students. Beyond, it means supporting all those who have experienced harassment or are affected by it.
Working toward these goals is a matter of good governance, clear procedures, and accountability. It also requires collective resolve, awareness, and vigilance; as well as mutual trust and a culture of openness and transparency. We are all aware that conditions enabling abuse in academia are structural, and that dismantling them is a matter for long-term collective work and collaboration.
With these goals in mind, and at the initiative of its students, the Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology at CEU has launched an in-depth collective reflection on these matters through various internal fora, and has taken measures to improve members’ information and clarity about what constitutes harassment, and the means to prevent and fight it. In AY 2020/21 CEU updated its Harassment and Sexual Harassment Policy to make reporting procedures more straightforward and to strengthen the support that complainants receive throughout the process. An Ombudsperson Network was set up and a smartphone App to report harassment (SpeakApp) will be available soon. More details of what may constitute harassment or sexual harassment can be found in Article 7 of the Policy and in this explainer booklet.