Alexander and Reifler alleged that they were sexually harassed and/or assaulted by a flute teacher (Keith Brion) and hockey coach,[4] respectively, and that Yale provided no procedure through which they could complain.
[5] Lisa Stone alleged emotional distress resulting from her knowledge of another female student’s experiences of sexual harassment by a male university employee without any available recourse.
At the district court level, a male faculty member and Lisa Stone's thesis adviser, John Winkler, alleged that the poisoned atmosphere arising from sexual harassment made a good relationship with his students impossible.
[10] The District Court upheld their legal argument, ruling that, "It is perfectly reasonable to maintain that academic advancement conditioned upon submission to sexual demands constitutes sex discrimination in education."
Equal Rights Advocates (ERA) and Women Organized Against Sexual Harassment (WOASH) filed a joint friend-of-the-court brief (amicus curiae) when Alexander v. Yale was appealed.
[19] In 1986, the Supreme Court ruled, in Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson, that a hostile work environment constituted sexual discrimination, vindicating another line of argument in Alexander v.