After four professors went public with their complaints against Dalhousie University’s treatment of its dentistry school’s Facebook scandal, 13 students involved in the group were partially suspended Jan. 5.
The professors told CBC that their complaints asked Dalhousie to suspend the students who created and participated in the 2015 DDS Gentlemen’s Club Facebook group, which the university investigated in December for sexually explicit and misogynistic posts as well as inappropriate discussions of female classmates.
But the university has yet to publicly name the students involved. By not naming these students, everyone in the dentistry program may be associated with this story.
Letting these students remain anonymous saves their reputations, their university degrees, and unfortunately, the lesson they should have learned by being called out on their actions publicly.
Facebook is a public platform and it is no surprise that these students were eventually found out by one of their targets.
Instead of letting them face the consequences of their actions by finding out how their peers and the public might feel about the group’s actions, the students are being protected from the backlash of their actions.
Yes, they are being protected from embarrassment and shame, but they will not learn what it’s like to face the scrutiny of their peers.
It’s great that people are coming forward to call for more consequences against these students. But the consequences should be public.
