Student goes naked in class over discrimination
News & Trends •
an international male student agreed with the professor1 students and their teacher were left confused after a cornell university new york senior letitia chai delivered her honours thesis after stripping down to her bra and underwear in the class to protest against oppressive beliefs and discrimination1 chai removed all her clothes except for her undergarments during her acting in public presentation saturday as a demonstration against her professor rebekah maggor who questioned her attire during her talk about refugee relocation1 when i got up to start my professor said is that really what you would wear1 your shorts are too short1 chai who said she was filled with rage and disbelief after the incident took to her facebook to write about the confrontation1 she recalled wearing a long-sleeve blue button-down shirt and denim cut-offs which she alleges her professor told her was inviting the male gaze away from the content of my presentation and onto my body1 at least two dozen of the students also undressed in solidarity1 chai said maggor tried to justify her question by explaining she was addressing her from the point of view of a concerned mother to which chai replied that her mom is a feminist gender sexuality studies professor who wouldve been proud of her for her outfit1 in the classsyllabus students dress is one of the course requirements1 for your performances dress appropriately for the persona you will present the syllabus reads for example how would you dress for a specific job interview1 how would you dress when introducing a famous speaker at a particular conference how would you dress to give a speech at a protest rally1 the students in the class while still supporting chai wrote ajoint letterdefending the professors comments but nevertheless the faculty will undergo training in diversity equity and inclusion as a result of the exchange according to an email chaiposted onmonday1 maggor and chai refused to comment further on the issue1