Harassment allegations have come to light nearly two months since the Oregon State University student government went into temporary shutdown.

Multiple sources within ASOSU have brought forth instances of harassment, such as controlling the narrative of Senate meetings, and using social media to mislead the public. This mainly involves two former ASOSU members, Dylan Perfect and Matteo Paola.

Harassment and a toxic work environment have reportedly plagued the ASOSU over the past couple of years and are cited as being the leading cause of the student government’s temporary shutdown.

These claims have been backed up by sources close to the situation who wish to remain anonymous due to fear of retaliation. However, OSU administration noted that it is a nuanced situation and it is difficult to pin the source of the student government shutdown on any one individual.

In response to allegations of harassment and a toxic work environment, university officials and ASOSU leadership enacted a temporary pause of the Oregon State student government on February 28. 

On Feb. 25, former ASOSU Vice President Zach Kowash resigned, citing harassment and a toxic work environment as his major point of leaving, however Kowash left the specifics of toxicity unclear.

According to one source in ASOSU who requested anonymity due to fears of retaliation, during Senate meetings, Perfect would allegedly send Teams and Signal chats to senators, in order to control what was being said during the public meetings.

“(Senators would) get to the middle of a sentence, you could tell they got a message, and they’d start reading the opposite of what they’ve been saying, like mid sentence, they switched positions,” the source said. 

Paola denies allegations of influencing Senate meetings, but declined to give a public comment—feeling “uncomfortable” having to defend himself against “vague and nonspecific accusations.” However, he agrees with Perfect in feeling a sense of harassment coming from student government leaders who allege himself and Perfect are the sources of harassment within the ASOSU.

Sources have also linked both Perfect and Paola to an Instagram account known as “The Pressure,” which gained notoriety among student leaders for posting sarcastic and inflammatory commentary about ASOSU politics, often targeting specific individuals by role or implication.

One source within the ASOSU, who requested anonymity due to concerns of retaliation, alleged that Paola told the source that he was behind The Pressure. “I can confirm through direct verbal communication with Matteo that he is, in fact, behind The Pressure,” the source said.

Perfect and Paola have denied allegations of their involvement with the page, however, several other sources familiar with its operations allege the duo are behind it, using it as an outlet to ridicule opponents and reinforce their narrative.

In responding to allegations of being behind The Pressure, Perfect said, “I am not now, nor have I ever been, behind the Instagram account or website @osuthepressure. This is pure speculation by a small number of incumbent student government officers who have decided in their own minds that it must be mine.”

Perfect continued, “Sometimes I’ve liked that account’s posts, and it’s probably because my views sometimes align with that page that they’ve decided for themselves that it’s my page. But it just isn’t. They’re simply speaking from their biases. I’ve tried to no avail to get them to stop spreading this misinformation, but it clearly hasn’t worked. Honestly, that deliberate, persistent, and repeated choice feels awfully reminiscent of what some might call “harassment.'”

According to another source, those that refused to “buck the party line” or conform to certain political positions (such as the Labor Beavs slate) end up on The Pressure and they would get ridiculed during meetings.

These instances are not new to the ASOSU though.

On Jan. 24, 2023, several ASOSU Senators and SFC members signed a letter that accused then-SFC Chair Matteo Paola and then-Archivist Dylan Perfect of repeatedly using their roles to coerce and intimidate fellow student government members. 

The allegations, which center around the 2022-2023 legislative session, paint a picture of a hostile work environment, fueled by personal agendas and what the letter describes as a “clear conflict of interest” between outside advocacy and legislative duties. 

The 2023 letter expressed similar concerns, citing “perceived threats,” misinformation campaigns, and pressure tactics used to sway votes on key legislation—most notably Senate Resolution 83.01, which called for a living wage for student workers. This included allegedly pressuring senators, SFC members and other ASOSU members to vote along party lines.

According to the letter, Paola and Perfect misrepresented the outcome of the resolution to outside advocacy groups and shared selective or misleading information on social media and Discord channels. However, the Barometer could not obtain examples of this.

The signatories, including six ASOSU Senators and two SFC liaisons, wrote that the experience left them and others feeling “unsafe, uncomfortable, and intimidated.”

In addition to harassment allegations, the letter and recent sources also point to broader concerns about structural racism and sexism within ASOSU—particularly as experienced by women of color. Citing a 2021 opinion piece in The Daily Barometer, the letter calls out a “history of exhibiting sexism and racism among its membership” which continues to affect the organization’s culture.

“This is not a letter asking for punishment,” the letter reads. “But rather for recognition of the shortcomings within our student government and a request for their improvement.”