NEW YORK — A New York federal appeals court says it’s the job of Congress and the president, not the courts, to confront claims that female cadets face a sexually oppressive culture at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Two of three judges on the Manhattan appeals panel rejected a former cadet’s effort to force two former superior officers at the New York school to be held liable for what she calls a “sexually aggressive culture.”
She says that culture included the routine harassment of female cadets and led to her rape by a fellow cadet. The lawsuit also cites offensive chants during campus marches.
A spokeswoman for lawyers representing the officers declined to comment. West Point did not immediately comment.
A civil rights lawyer called the ruling disappointing.
