transcript
Text card: 2020
Dartmouth College, New Hampshire
Vashki Chauhan: In September 2015, I arrived from the Boston airport aboard a Dartmouth coach circling the green.
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I felt hopeful about what was to come here, about the learning, and about the science. But I don’t really feel like that anymore.
I am Vashki Chauhan. I have a Ph.D. student in the field of cognitive neuroscience. I am pursuing a Ph.D. At Dartmouth College, my research focuses on how humans recognize other people’s faces.
When I was in 9th grade, I got a book about the theory of relativity and Einstein’s life and how he became a scientist, and it just blew my mind.
I got really interested in physics, and I bought books on cosmology, general relativity, and quantum mechanics with all my pocket money, just like I was really, really obsessed with it.
I was interested in physics, so I liked thinking about artificial intelligence and robotics. So everything worked out in the end.
When I arrived in Hannover on a flight from Mumbai, I was fascinated by these red brick buildings. When I got there, it felt like I was walking in a dream.
Once I got here, I realized that in order to blend in with my surroundings, I needed to go and have a drink with them.
There were three tenured professors in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. Todd Heatherton, Bill Kelly, Paul Whalen. They brought in many grants and were very famous.
The professors are at the bar when suddenly the women in the group start holding new drinks they didn’t pick or pay for. The expenses were paid by the professor.
It was very standardized so, well, I just followed it.
Christina Rapuano: Mentorship was so intertwined with this drinking culture that if you had a drink in front of you, turning it down felt almost like refusing advice.
Sasha Brietzke: Either you go out to the bar and have a beer with him and he reads your newspaper, or you don’t read it and he ignores you.
Annemarie Brown: There are so many red flags right now. And no one registered as a red flag to me at the time. They tried to keep us from talking about each other’s experiences, and it worked pretty well.
Rapuano: Bill Kelly and Paul Whalen routinely joked about our looks as if it were a contest.
Andrea Courtney: Paul Whalen was seen kissing someone on the forehead, but there was just a lot of hugging and inappropriate touching.
Marissa Evans: The text messages were like, “Oh, what are you doing?” “Oh, I was drinking. A girl like you will never have a guy like me.” Sent me nude photos and told me what he wanted to do with me …
Rapuano: When I entered graduate school with Bill Kelly, I went through a lot of grooming from day one. Until he physically took advantage of me at a conference. This is my advisor, so I just… I didn’t resist, I didn’t say anything. I felt trapped.
Fried rice: Cumulatively, it’s like it’s all consistent with the behavior of a predator.
One day, Paul Whalen invited me to his home for a farewell party for one of his RAs. There were a lot of other graduate students there as well. Then I went to a bar, and after that I was like, “If you want another beer, this place is closing, so you can go home.”
I had been to his house before, but it didn’t feel like anything special.
So I was trying to play some music and he was going to get a beer or something and that’s all I did. . . I felt a presence behind his body. And you never forget things like that. Don’t forget to say, “Oh my god, what is really going on right now?”
I remember always saying no…I used words and I used actions. I said it clearly. And I know that deep down.
He had so much power and influence and weight, and I was a graduate student from India in the early stages of my Ph.D.
It was truly a deep and insidious violation of trust and human behavior.
Brietzke: For a while I didn’t realize how much evil had been done. I had heard the rumors.
I attended conferences, conferences, and Todd Heatherton liked to attend post-conference events at karaoke bars in an extremely inebriated state. Well, he called me over to where he was sitting, grabbed my butt, and made me sit on his lap. I just remember feeling this intense sense of embarrassment and shame and feeling like I would never be taken seriously as a scientist.
I started getting really angry at the hotel, at the conference hotel. And after that I started talking to people.
Courtney: To be honest, it took me a while to compare my experience to other women before I started to realize that it wasn’t the problem.
brown: We noticed what an eerie and surprising similarity there was between the patterns of these women.
We realized they were trying to do this.
Brietzke: At first I was like, oh, this is just my experience. And oh, other people have had similar experiences to these three men. And, oh, it seems like there are a lot of women.
Rapuano: So we sorted ourselves out and met with the head of the department. They understood without even mentioning the professor’s name. They knew exactly who we were talking about and decided to launch a Title IX investigation.
Brietzke: The committee decided that the three professors should be fired.
However, before it was finalized, Bill and Paul resigned and Todd retired.
Fried rice: Allowing the three professors to resign or retiring after a year-long investigation would not set a precedent. You’re just doing what’s easiest and least costly for your organization.
At that point, we felt like okay, maybe what we need to do to bring about real change is to sue the university from our side.
Because they need to treat us better.
Rapuano: When I first decided to file a lawsuit, I requested anonymity.
Brietzke: I felt like I was blowing up my career without really knowing the full extent of the damage.
Fried rice: I was worried that I wouldn’t be seen as a scientist. You will be seen as a victim.
But in order for our story to resonate with other women, and for institutions to be interested in our story, we had to do everything in our power.
We basically had to risk our lives to make the impact we wanted to make.
ABC World News Tonight Archives: “There have been startling accusations from several young women that three male professors at Dartmouth College have turned their department into a 21st century menagerie, which they describe as a “predator.” It’s called the club.
Courtney: The response was overwhelmingly positive and very, very encouraging.
Rapuano: Faculty from other institutions have also contacted us and asked for more information about our case so that they can make changes within their own departments.
Fried rice: Many Indian women have contacted me and said, “I can’t believe this is your decision, considering our culture.It feels like it’s an option for me too.” ” It was like that.
Text card: In 2019, the plaintiffs and more than 70 class members reached a $14 million settlement with the city of Dartmouth.
Text card: Under the settlement, Dartmouth invested $1.5 million to hire diverse faculty and support nonprofit organizations working to end gender-based violence.
Text card: 2024
Harlem, New York City
Rapuano: During the litigation, I think it was very important for our names and faces to be part of the litigation. Because it humanizes what the lawsuit represents. However, it is important to know that our story does not end with that incident. It is a story that is always evolving and unfolding, it is our life, and although the incident does not define us, it does change who we are to this day.
So I ended up becoming a researcher at a startup company. I’m really grateful that I was able to get to a place where I can still continue doing science, but there are more checks and balances there and I don’t have to worry about that kind of abuse of power happening. Not on me.
One of the things I started doing was actually weightlifting. So I lift heavy weights 3-4 times a week. You can squat much more than your body weight. Yes, it’s really fun. Being inside your own body feels so good and makes you feel strong.
Fried rice: I was a graduate student at Dartmouth College when the lawsuit occurred. So I had to complete my PhD in the aftermath of all that. So, in a sense, there was a lot of hostility in that moment, in that environment.
Considering so many unexpected things happened, I felt there was no way science could support me. In fact, I felt like no one needed me. But, uh, I continued to follow the path of curiosity and it took me to New York City.
So now I’m working as a postdoctoral researcher at Barnard College.
Fried rice (tape): I can’t wait to show this to you…
I currently work as a publisher or volunteer as a publisher at Science for the People.
This is an issue that concerns me. It’s about technology.
We also have a strong and impressive New York City chapter where we work together on direct action.
It’s a really fulfilling experience to not have to feel so alone in wanting science to be more than a career.
Rapuano: I’ve been very lucky to maintain a very close relationship with my best friend Vashki.
She lives life hard in all its aspects, both in her science as a postdoctoral fellow and in her activist work. I’m always in awe of her.
Fried rice: What I learned is that if you want to make a difference, don’t go it alone. Try to do it with people who can share the burden, have the same goals as you, and who can be held accountable for the outcome.
There are few things that I think are permanent, but our friendship is one of them.
Text card: Scientific American reviewed complaints filed by interviewees as part of the litigation.
Text card: In October 2024, we reached out to Dartmouth for comment on this story. The university responded:
“Sexual violence and harassment have no place at Dartmouth. We work every day to ensure a safe, respectful, fair, and inclusive learning and research environment for all students, faculty, and staff. I’m here.
“Dartmouth College had no prior knowledge of the misconduct and applauds the efforts of the women who brought these concerns to light in 2017. Upon learning of the students’ concerns, Dartmouth College had no prior knowledge of the misconduct and applauds the efforts of the women who brought these concerns to light in 2017. Upon learning of the students’ concerns, Dartmouth College “We promptly conducted a rigorous and objective review consisting of an investigation,” led by an experienced external investigator who interviewed more than 50 witnesses and reviewed extensive documentation.
“Dartmouth College has taken the unprecedented step of revoking tenure and terminating the employment of all faculty members after a careful investigation revealed conduct that was inconsistent with the university’s values and in violation of its policies. Ta.”
