CCSU students call for justice and accountability after viral rape allegation surfaces

A Central Connecticut State University sophomore who survived a sexual assault when she was just 15 years old shouted into a bullhorn on the university’s campus on Friday, urging school administrators and law enforcement to listen to students’ allegations of sexual violence by other students.

Victoria Prusaczyk, 19, was part of a sizable rally that wound through the campus Friday afternoon in response to a video posted on TikTok in which a young woman, who has not been identified, alleged that a leader of a campus organization had been accused of rape.

Dozens of students marched through the campus and to the Central Connecticut State University Police Department, carrying signs and chanting calls for justice and accountability.

“2, 4, 6, 8 Central needs to stop the rape,” they shouted on the quad, while cries of “protect the victims not the abuser” echoed outside the campus police department.

School administrators said that they have not received any formal complaints regarding any sexual assaults on campus but had hired an independent firm to investigate the allegations.

Dr. Kellie Byrd Danso, Vice President of Student Affairs for CCSU, attended the rally alongside other members of the faculty. She recognized that the rally was in response to a video that was posted two days earlier “that made an accusation about a student being in a leadership position and being a rapist on campus.”

In the video posted on TikTok, someone asks a student what she’d like to see on campus. The student responds that she “would like to see less people in IRC positions accused of rape, such as you.”

The Inter-Residence Council (IRC) is an organization run by CCSU resident students that aims to enhance the campus living experience for students, according to the group’s page on the university website.

The video prompted concern for students, said Byrd Dans, and the university “took swift action.”

That swift action, she said, included securing an outside independent agency to do a full investigation and prompted a statement to be sent to students, faculty and staff by CCSU President Zulma R. Toro.

“Make no mistake, Central Connecticut State University has a no-tolerance policy — this University does not and will not tolerate any type of sexual misconduct or bullying,” said Toro said in the letter. “We will do everything in our power to ensure our campus is a safe, welcoming environment for all. We are moving as quickly as possible to ensure that this matter is resolved appropriately under the law and our CCSU policies and procedures.”

Toro said that the university’s new Vice President for Equity & Inclusion Craig Wright was set to begin an “expedited and thorough investigation” and urged students with information or allegations to contact Wright immediately at craig.wright@ccsu.edu.

Janice Palmer, a spokesperson for the school, said school administrators are very concerned but that the campus police department is not involved because no formal complaints have been filed.

“We have no complaints so they don’t have anything to investigate at this point,” she said.

Toro also said in the letter that Byrd Danso was working with a team “to ensure appropriate and necessary support is offered to all the parties involved in this situation.”

The student affairs vice president said that any formal complaints would go through the university’s equity and inclusion department and that the university has services available for victims, like anonymous reporting options, counseling and a women’s services center. She also said administrators were encouraging any students who were victims of sexual assault to come forward and that they were ready to listen.

“We hear them. That’s why we’re here today, we want to listen to their concerns. We want all of our students to feel supported and feel secure on campus,” she said.

McDave Clenord, a 21-year-old third-year student from Boston studying mechanical engineering, said he doesn’t feel heard by school leaders.

As a whole, he thinks the student body “feels unheard,” he said as he marched through the campus with a sign that said, “Are we loud enough yet?”

Clenord said that when he heard about the allegations, he wasn’t surprised. He said he heard similar allegations made before on campus that were “slid under the rug.”

By marching and speaking out, he said, “we’ve been trying to bring it into the light.”

“I just hope that things change and problems are solved and people in high positions make the changes on campus,” he said, as he marched alongside classmates that held signs reading “Don’t pretend you didn’t know,” “Protect the victim, not the abuser,” “Stop the silence no more violence,” “CCSU protects rapists over women,” and “Hold rapists accountable.”

Bria Stanley, a 20-year-old junior studying criminology, said she thinks victims being silenced is an issue people are dealing with on college campuses across the United States. She said she was aware of multiple friends on campus who had been the victim of multiple abusive interactions involving other students.

Her classmate, 18-year-old psychology sophomore Gracie Manushi, agreed. She said she hoped the rally in New Britain would prompt students at other schools to speak out against sexual violence.

“Hopefully with this happening here at Central, other colleges and high schools across the nation will come out and speak up because we’re not the only campus where this is happening,” Manushi said.

Prusaczyk said she felt participating in the rally helped her feel more empowered following her own assault, and that sharing her own story and talking about what happened to her helped her stop “dwelling on the past” and feel like she had more power over her own life.

“As a survivor myself I feel like what I needed in the moment was support and being able to be heard from someone was of big importance for me. When I went through it myself, I kept it in for three years, and when I finally spoke to someone about it that’s when I finally felt better myself,” she said. “By doing this today I hope that it spreads awareness and helps people come out more and talk about these things because once I did I grew as a person.”

She said she first heard of the allegations after the video was posted on TikTok, and that classmates across campus had a strong reaction.

“People are furious, are mad, and it is disgusting hearing these things and seeing women and men feeling unsafe on campus. I feel for these people and I feel like today should be the day that things change,” she said.

A pre-social work major, Prusaczyk said she thinks administrators need to be more present and comforting to men and women who have survived sexual assaults and hopes the campus increases the availability of support services.

Bullhorn in hand, Prusaczyk closed out the rally Thursday standing in front of a crowd of students — some crying, some embracing each other — and said “this is the beginning of a movement, not the end.”