According to Ohio State University policy, both “staring” and “brushing against a person’s body” can count as “sexual harassment.”

(It’s not clear how someone would prove that another student had been staring at them, nor how the common incidents of students bumping into each other in the hallway would be handled under this policy.)


The sexual-harassment guide also provides an explanation of how “flirting” is different from “harassment.” For example, flirting makes someone feel “good,” whereas harassment makes someone feel “bad.” Flirting makes someone feel “happy,” while harassment makes someone feel “sad/angry.”

Although words like “good” and “bad” are easy enough to understand, I’m not sure how anyone is supposed to know what another person will feel like when you flirt with them before you even try it. (If anyone does have an idea, please clue me in — it might make my dating life easier.)

OSU’s policy was last updated in 2014, according to an article published in the Washington Examiner.


—​ Katherine Timpf is a National Review Online reporter.