She will have a long career in academia.
Via The College Fix:
Thank heavens she didn’t do the Full Monty.
A Cornell University student was so offended that her female professor questioned her outfit in preparation for her thesis presentation that she ditched most of the outfit – as did her protesting audience.
Yes, there was a livestream. And yes, the Title IX office is involved.
The Cornell Daily Sun reports that Prof. Rebekah Maggor allegedly asked student Letitia Chai “is that really what you would wear?” when Chai wore jean shorts during “a trial run of her thesis presentation on rehabilitation for displaced people and refugees.”
The syllabus for the public-speaking course explicitly warns students their choice of clothing will be scrutinized:
The work in this course requires the ability to move freely. Wear clothes and footwear that are comfortable and will allow you a free range of movement in class.
For your performances, dress appropriately for the persona you will present. (For example, howwould you dress for a specific job interview? How would you dress when introducing a famous speaker at a particular conference? How would you dress to give a speech at a protest rally?)
Perhaps Chai thought of her presentation as a protest, and decided jean shorts were something she’d wear at a rally.
Maggor allegedly told her the outfit would also detract from “men’s attention” toward her material, and a “male international student” said Chai has a “moral obligation” to wear something more conservative in a presentation, at which “Chai left the room with two students following to comfort her,” according to the Sun.
The professor said she had previously asked a male student to remove a cap during the presentation, but Chai thinks the question toward her reflected sexism.
The student walked back into the theater and did her trial presentation in her bra and underwear.[…]
The Sun reports that Chai ordered the audience to “strip” when she did her presentation Saturday in bra and underwear, and 28 of the 44 people “slowly started to remove their clothes.”
She said relevant officials pre-approved her underwear presentation, and one of them – a male – “promises to undress a little.” (No word on how the Title IX office feels about a student asking a professor to strip.)
Cornell’s Title IX office reached out to Chai after her publicity, but she said she’s not “actively pursuing a case at present,” according to the Sun. The Title IX office doesn’t need a complainant to investigate Maggor, however.
The professor told the Sun she only asked students “to reflect for themselves and make their own decisions” about their outfits during presentations, and she’s getting support from most of the students who witnessed the kerfuffle.