Duke Lacrosse Team Is At The Center Of Attention After A Team Party Goes Wrong


The Duke University Lacrosse team has had its season suspended indefinitely after the rape accusation of a local stripper following a Duke Lacrosse team party.

On March 13, the lacrosse team had a party that involved having strippers dance for them. However, the night ended with a rape accusation from one of the strippers who also happened to be African American.

Duke University has a poor relationship with the town and its residents. In fact, last yer, the Princton Review reported that Duke had the country's fifth worst 'town-gown relationship'. Additionally, the university, which is predominantly white, is surrounded by a town largely full of blue collar workers. Also, the majority of the local residents are African American, which brings racial issues to the forefront.

The rape accusation in addition to the race issue is creating a great deal of bad PR for Duke University forcing them to re-establish control of student partying as well as their relationship with local residents.

Following the incident, 46 of the 47 Duke Lacrosse players were asked to give samples of DNA to authorities in order to facilitate the investigation. The school has already lost a portion of its reputation as the media focus has shifted from its fine academics to the rape of a stripper. However, the lacrosse players stand to lose a lot as well. The guilty individual or individuals could receive anywhere from 16 to 20 years in prison.

With such a horrible event taking place, it is strange that the Duke University lacrosse coach, Mike Pressler, has had nothing to say of the incident. Since his players were the ones involved, he should have spoken openly at a press conference saying that the team is cooperating with the authorities. Speaking openly with the media would prevent rumors and heresay from spreading.

The school has suffered irreparable damage to its reputation. The players (and I'm talking about the ones not involved with the incident) have had their reputations injured even more.

The school has taken some positive steps to mitigate the damage caused by the incident, but, at the same time, has made some mistakes. First of all, Duke is already making changes in order to create a better relationship with its local residents. Many of the off-campus houses leased by the Duke students will be sold after the lease runs out this year in order to prevent loud parties from occuring off-campus and prevent students from disturbing local residents. Also, the school is speaking openly about the incident. However, the lacrosse coach, Mike Pressler, has not spoken about the incident. The school is handling the situation well, but the administration needs to get Mike Pressler in front of the camera in order to end any suspicion that he is hiding information.

Only time will tell if anyone on the team is guilty, but much of the damage has already been done. For the past week, the public has been talking about the incident that occurred at Duke. Their reputation has been damaged and they have taken steps to prevent further damage, but Duke will have to work hard to fix the damage caused by the incident and the rumors surrounding it.

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