Sometimes a story is so so appalling, it captures the public’s attention, including the attention of people who don’t focus on the issue otherwise. Such is the case with the alleged 2024 gang rape at Cornell University.

For feminists who focus on violence against women or anyone who has ever cared about campus rape, the claims made in Jane Doe’s civil lawsuit against the alleged perpetrators may be unusual in its severity – but we know the statistics that show that somewhere between 20% and 25% of women college students will be the victim of a sexual assault (no statistics tell us what percentage of men students will be rapists).

This makes the public outcry to punish seven male students miss the point, which is that there are tens of thousands of campus rape stories, few of which make the news.

We know that nearly every campus in the US has a plethora of rape victims and rapists. We also know how it often happens. The Johns Hopkins University “student well-being” blog summarizes a key aspect:

“The ‘Red Zone’ is a period of time that lasts from the start of the fall semester through Thanksgiving break when the majority of sexual assault occurs on college campuses ... It’s a six-to-10-week time frame when many students are going to parties, gatherings, and other social events to celebrate their return to campus. Data shows that over 50% of sexual assaults that occur on college campuses occur during this time. New students can be especially vulnerable during this period, due to their unfamiliarity with the campus, new social experiences, and the resources available to........

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