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04/03/2006:

"Rape case highlights South's abiding divide"

It had all the ugliness of the Old South in an institution that prides itself on being a pillar of the New South: a brutal collision of race, sex and class at one of America's most prestigious universities.

In an episode that has deeply divided opinion at North Carolina's Duke University and beyond, this much is clear. On March 14, an African American working her way through college at North Carolina Central University, Durham, reported to police that she had been gang-raped by three white men at a party organised by the lacrosse team of Duke University, which is on the other side of town.

...Duke, one of America's most sought after private institutions, is an island of affluence in a working-class African American town where the median income is less than the $41,000 (£24,000) annual tuition. The other college is a traditionally black institution. Lacrosse, unlike sports that are viewed as an escape from urban poverty, is seen as an elite pursuit.

The lacrosse team at Duke, the Blue Devils, is by reputation hard-drinking. Last week, the News & Observer reported that 15 members had received cautions for under-age drinking and other minor offences. Meanwhile, neighbours have accused team members of painting racist graffiti on cars, and yelling racist insults at the woman as she left the party.

Those tensions have deepened in the days since the party, with neighbours banging pots and pans outside the players' house in nightly vigils. Meanwhile, the university has struggled to counter criticism that it has been too tolerant of rowdiness among sports teams, and was slow to discipline the lacrosse team for the excessive drinking at the party.

University officials waited two weeks after the alleged incident to cancel the rest of the lacrosse season.
guardian.co.uk