Sports Culture Creates Leeway and Landmines Regarding Sexual Harrassment

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The nuanced culture of athletics brings both leeway and landmines to discussions of sexual harassment.

Occ 408 Ab On Jan. 14, former University of North Carolina student-athlete Melissa Jennings won a settlement of $385,000, subtracted from the athletic department's 2007-08 budget, to settle a decade-old sexual harassment claim against legendary women's soccer coach Anson Dorrance. Jennings, a walk-on goalkeeper who had been cut from the team, alleged that Dorrance harassed team members by asking about their sex lives. Former team captain Debbie Keller had joined Jennings' suit and settled for $70,000 in 2004. Dorrance, who has won 19 national championships (and counting) with the Tar Heels, dismissed his inquiries as banter of a "jesting or teasing nature."

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