Could be investigated for ‘discriminatory harassment’
Sarah Semrad’s private tweet “I fucking hate white men” had only been posted for about half an hour when a follower questioned how it would be perceived if she said the same about black men.
She quickly deleted the Nov. 9 tweet, but by then the damage had been done to the vice chair of the Wisconsin College Democrats, according to a person who knows Semrad and told The College Fix the timeline of events.
Semrad resigned from her position Tuesday after her private tweets were exposed, including an Oct. 9 tweet where she bragged about tearing down flyers for pro-life pregnancy counseling posted on the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse campus.
A College Democrats spokesperson confirmed her resignation and removal from the executive board to Campus Reform, while UW-L police told the La Crosse Tribune they couldn’t verify if vandalism complaints were made regarding torn-down flyers “during the time frame in question.”
She told the Tribune that she actually only removed one pro-life pregnancy flyer “that had not received proper university approval for on-campus posting”:
“In a moment of impulsivity and immaturity, I posted the tweet about white males as an expression of frustration towards my male friend who wouldn’t ask for directions,” she wrote. …
“I recognize that my words were neither humorous nor harmless, and sincerely apologize to all who have been hurt, offended or embarrassed by them,” she continued. “My commitment to social justice remains steadfast and will not be deterred by these events, and I vow to use the maturity and sensitivity that would reflect that going forward.”
Her former organization also said it wasn’t fair to judge Semrad, “a wonderful person with an admirable passion for government work and serving the needs of others,” or the organization based on her “sarcastic tweets on a locked Twitter account.”
She apparently took down the private account, which had about 600 followers, a day after the white-men tweet, the source told The Fix.
“She’s a hardcore feminist” and “campaigned for Hillary Clinton,” and also maintained a public Twitter account for her political activities, the source said: “She does have aspirations to run for public office.” (That account has also been removed.)
‘Derogatory or offensive comments’ based on race and sex can violate campus code
Semrad could theoretically be investigated for “discriminatory harassment” under UW-L policy, which is flagged as “arbitrary” and “ambiguous” by the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, if someone filed a complaint against her for the white-men tweet.
The university’s definition includes “unwelcome” written conduct “directed at an individual or group of individuals” based on their “protected status,” which includes race and sex.
Such conduct must be “sufficiently severe or pervasive so as to interfere” with a person’s work, education or academic environment, and create an environment “that a reasonable person would find intimidating, offensive or hostile.”
It also must be “objectively and subjectively harassing in nature,” but that threshold can be met by “derogatory or offensive comments.”
The campus College Republicans hinted at this potential violation of protected status in its response:
“Singling out any individuals based on their race, gender or religion is not something the College Republicans agree with,” the organization said. “This is especially troubling coming from someone at the second-highest leadership position in the state college Democrat organization.”
The chair of the state College Republicans, Jake Lubenow, told Fox News what was “more troubling” was that “someone who has demonized those who disagree with her has been allowed to serve in such a capacity for so long.”
Read the Tribune, Campus Reform and Fox News reports.
IMAGES: Sarah Semrad/Twitter
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