Eric Cantor’s Son Belongs to University of Virginia Fraternity in Rape Scandal
A son of the former congressman Eric Cantor is a member of the University of Virginia fraternity at the center of a high-profile rape scandal.
Michael “Mikey” Cantor, whose father until recently was the sole Jewish Republican in Congress, belongs to Phi Kappa Psi at the Charlottesville school, according to The Daily Caller website.
The younger Cantor has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
An investigative report published last month in Rolling Stone magazine chronicles the story of a woman named Jackie, who alleges that she was gang-raped at the fraternity house in 2012 by seven men while two other men looked on. In response to the article, the university suspended all fraternity activities through Jan. 9.
The Rolling Stone report described the gang rape as premeditated and indicated that it may have been part of an initiation ritual. The report also criticized the university’s handling of Jackie’s case, and campus sexual assault allegations in general. The University of Virginia did not initially investigate the incident, and the alleged perpetrators have not been disciplined.
Michael Cantor’s older brother, Evan, a University of Virginia alumnus, also was a member of Phi Kappa Psi. He graduated before the incident was alleged to have taken place.
Sabrina Rubin Erdely, who wrote the Rolling Stone article, has been scrutinized for not trying harder to contact the seven men accused of the rape, The New York Times reported Tuesday. Rolling Stone has since issued a statement in response to the criticism, saying that Erdely’s piece was fully fact-checked.
The University of Virginia and Charlottesville police have launched an investigation of the incident.
In June, Eric Cantor, a seven-term Richmond congressman who served as House majority leader, lost his primary to a Tea Party-backed challenger. In August, he resigned his seat and the following month announced that he would be joining a boutique investment bank.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
