Harassment and the Privilege of Unknowing: The Case of Larry Nassar

In 2014, Amanda Thomashow filed a complaint against Larry Nassar at Michigan State University. In its report describing the ensuing investigation, the university cleared Nassar of wrongdoing. A few years later, Nassar was sent to prison for abusing hundreds of girls and women. This essay takes a close look at the report describing that investigation’s finding. Drawing from Miranda Fricker’s work on epistemic injustice, this essay considers the sexual politics of knowing and unknowing within the context of a Title IX investigation set against the backdrop of a university’s attempt to overhaul not only its policies but its sexual culture.