Why Hazing Should Be Allowed In College

When you are a part of Greek life you are popular. In professional sports, with men sports the National Football League, National Basketball Association, Major Baseball League etc., there is a history of hazing to accept new rookies into the league. Even though, the organization have dangerous activities, but ignore outrageous events they may have to endure to become part of the organization. Hazing is classified into three types subtle, violent, and harassment. Subtle hazing is mainly deception, or not having to do the same thing other new members had to do. These falls under “reasonable hazing” to others, but to me it is not. With subtle hazing when a pledge is lining up you could call a guy run a lap but referring to him as a girl. Mainly, required greeting of members in a specific manner when seen on campus. With harassment hazing is causes stress, a relative degree of discomfort, physically or emotionally, to the new members

I love you.'” (qtd. in “HAZING AT COLLEGE FRATERNITIES”) This was the last conversation that Mrs. Culolias ever had with her son before his life was taken after a tragic incident at a fraternity party. After consuming an enormous amount of alcohol, days later, Jack Culolias was found at a nearby river. “The coroner determined that his drowning was an accident caused by heavy drinking and hypothermia” (“HAZING AT COLLEGE FRATERNITIES”). Jack’s death was a result of the fraternity and they hold responsibility for allowing his death to occur. While looking deeper into this subject, there are many other hazing allegations that ultimately have led to a death in some way. At the University of Albany, a student was forced, through a pledging ritual, to drink a gallon of alcohol of his choice. After that night, he was found dead due to alcohol poisoning (“UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY”). It shocks me that with multiple counts of deaths occurring in fraternities all across the United States, nothing is really being done to solve this issue. Without immediate attention, fraternities will continue to affect these pledges by either scarring them for life or even worse, being the sole reason for their

Teddy Bommarito comments on the top four reasons why he believes Greek organizations are beneficial to universities and colleges around the nation (n.pag.). His rationale is that fraternities, along with sororities, offer participants with the following benefits: lasting bonds of friendship and networking among members, pleasure and enjoyment, help from older members in the organization, and improving their safety awareness in reference to the dangers of alcohol consumption and driving while under the influence (Bommarito n.pag.). Bommarito also shows how each detail of Greek societies can ultimately help an incoming college freshman in the long run (n.pag.). While fraternities and sororities are frequently affiliated with hazing, binge drinking,

In “Examining the Benefits of Greek Life.” Nicole Glass explains why she believes that Greek life is a great opportunity for students in public universities. Nicole gives multiple examples of famous people in history that were in sororities. Nicole explains that the Greek life system gives students opportunity to make friends that will be with for life, have fun at parties, and learn leadership skills that students will use for the rest of their lives. The author points out that the sororities/ fraternities have a very bad name in the press, but the hazing is very rare throughout the Greek system.

Sheffield, Jack Darkes and Frances K. Del Boca). The numbers between 2-year and 4 year colleges that involve problematic binge drinking are respectfully higher on a 4-year college campus, however despite this elevation, binge drinking still presents its share of consequences at an undergrad level. The environmental differences contribute to the lower numbers at a community college level are associated with the lack of fraternities and sororities and the variations of social norms. Prevention and intervention efforts would need to speak to these differences in campus life and maneuver around the limited financial and personnel

The article that I have selected is about hazing and how it is heavily associated with greek fraternity and sororitys across the U.S. Hazing is the act of ‘‘any activity expected of someone that joins a group and has the potential to humiliates, degrades, abuses, comprise safety, or inflicts pain until its victims’’(Richardson, Wang, &Hill, 2012). Hazing as a form of initation into these fratertinities and sorriorites and the behavior is highly anticpitate and welcomed as for many it is look at as a form of handed down tradition. Which brings us to the theory of reasoned action and it having much to do with an individuals positive or negative feelings about performing a behavior. Many have taken on the mindset that if you are not

Hazing is a method of humiliation performed on new members of fraternities and occasionally sororities (Morton Interview). Examples include forcing people to drink alcohol against their will, consume unpalatable or spoiled foods, perform excessive amounts of strenuous exercises, and many other unsafe activities (DeSantis 171). This tradition of embarrassing new members “affects any group of people with a hierarchical membership or a structure where you have people who are trying to gain entry to an organization” (Cohen Interview). This unhealthy custom “snowballs” each year, meaning sophomore members hazed last year will most likely haze this years’ freshmen (Cohen Interview). Hazing can become hazardous and even life-threatening very quickly. An example is the death of Maxwell Gruver, a freshman fraternity pledge at Louisiana State University. As part of an initiation game called “Bible Study,” Gruver had to recite the Greek Alphabet from memory; if he messed up, he had to chug hard liquor and was pelted with hot sauce and mustard (Willen). Gruver passed away the next day at a nearby hospital. His blood-alcohol level of .495 was more than six times the legal intoxication level in most states (Willen). Most fraternity deaths involve alcohol, but other dangerous acts occur as part of hazing. According to C. Ross Jr, author of The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities, "In white organizations, the problem [with hazing] is alcohol. In black, it's violence" (qtd. in Krieger). On campuses such as Texas State University, MGC and NPHC fraternities do not have houses, so issues with alcohol is not a concern (Morton Interview). Instead, humiliating pledges takes the form of beating, punching, kicking, etc. for as long as a month (Krieger). Regardless of the involvement of alcohol or violence, students in both fraternities and sororities find their mental and

Across the nation, hazing has been a controversial topic for decades and decades. Hazing is most popular in college students who are seeking to become a member of a fraternity or sorority. In most cases, hazing is a humiliating and dangerous initiation ritual. Although legal action has been implemented in order to eradicate such behavior, not every state has anti-hazing laws. In fact, according to Stop Hazing, 44 out of 50 states have anti-hazing laws, which leaves a remainder of 6 states who do not. Even though these laws exist, unfortunately, not everyone abides by them. This has become a major issue in university fraternities in the United States because it is not only dangerous and unfair, but also disregarded.

Well, you first have to go through rush and talk to tons of guys as they judge whether you’re a good fit for their fraternity. Basically, brothers are looking to see if you add anything to their fraternities reputation. Will you make them look better, or worse? If a fraternity decides you represent their ideals, they will extend you a bid. This doesn’t make you a brother because you first have to be initiated, but that won’t happen until months after you receive your bid. In the meantime, you will be given a multitude of tasks to complete in order to prove that you belong in that fraternity. Fraternities use hazing as a means of filtering out new members who are not willing to endure the same things that their brothers before them have. Becoming an honorary member of a fraternity is not as simple as receiving a bid card. A bid is an invitation to willingly be put through hell just so you can wear their letters. By completing perilous tasks that are seen as tradition and a ‘rite of passage’, pledges are inadvertently saying they’re willing to endure and go under incredible difficulties to be a member, which shows loyalty, but at what cost? Putting yourself in grave danger all for the sake of being in a “top fraternity.” The thing is, fraternities need new members to exist and one would think that intense hazing would drive members away; And so, some decide it’s not for them, but the ones that stick around clearly want to be a member of that specific fraternity so badly they’ll do absolutely whatever it takes to become a member, even if it means potentially putting their lives at

About 1,800 students die every year of alcohol related causes. An additional 600,000 injured drunk and roughly 100,000 become victims of alcohol related sexual assaults (McMurtrie). Students often fail to complete their college credentials because students are overwhelmed, overextended, underfunded and under prepared due to a recent survey of students that did not complete their studies. Though 65% of students drop out plan to return, but only 38% do return to their college studies (“Each One Help One”). Drinking is so central to students’ expectations of college because some are there just to have fun, while others have to fight for what is seen as a basic right (McMurtrie). Not every student has a chance to go to college, it seems as though the student body has a divide among the students that genuinely care about academics and those who do not. It is up to the student to put the time and effort, but the ones who do, do not always have the money which has lead to 62% of all college students who drop out because of being responsible for paying their education (“Each One Help One”). When thinking about college, one of the first things people think about are partying and the Greek life (Frats and Sororities), students going out on the weekends to have a good time and then sleeping all day the next day to nurse the effects from their night before. College parties have become a general expectation of a student’s life that for some it is a major factor in what schools they

“Let’s meet up and indulge in a little drinking this weekend!!” That statement is one heard among the college community nationwide nowadays. Binge drinking with others to gain new friendships, meet people, among other reasons, on college campuses is the thought process countless students believe today. “The Harvard School of Public Health found in 1993 that binge drinking is widespread on American campuses, particularly among members of fraternities and sororities (Bruffee, 1999).” If college students think binge drinking and partying is “cool” and the best way to meet new friends, they need to think again! Binge drinking is a career killer with terrible consequences. Finding and receiving the available support when it becomes out of control is the key to gaining a successful college education and finishing school with a degree.

`Alcohol consumption is very popular within Frats and sororities. There are many Greek life members who enjoy the fact that they are able to take part in alcohol consumption within their frat or sorority. However, alcohol in Greek life brings has more cons than pros. Greek life should be forced to adopt no-alcohol policies because it will prevent acts of alcohol hazing and they are a representation of the school.

The acts of hazing that I have heard and read about are absolutely appalling. They range from breast ranking, circling “problem areas” on bodies, forcing them to strip down and provocatively dance in front of fraternity men, or making them chose between using hard drugs or using a sex toy in front of their potential new sisters.

In “Alcohol Mixed with Energy Drinks: Consumption Patterns and Motivations for Use in U.S. College Students”, written by Cecile A. Marczinski, states that, “Binge drinking in college students is wide spread and known to cause significant harms and health hazards for the drinker.” This has proven true and is a major problem even on UNC Chapel Hill’s campus. The amount of alcohol consumption on UNC Chapel Hill’s campus is nonsensical and has proven to be an extreme problem. During the interview I posed a question to Ann Wooten, Head of Chi Omega sorority at UNC Chapel Hill, asking, “Is alcohol consumption at UNC Chapel Hill as bad as many may think, and what do you view as the major problem within Chi Omega?” She responded by saying, “Yes, alcohol consumption at UNC Chapel Hill has been a major problem and is creating an excessive amount of problems at the university. The major problem within Chi Omega, as well as, all the other sororities is the fact the girls are so adamant in trying to drink as much as the boys. This creates even more problems because girls cannot consume as much as boys but they feel like they can or should. This makes them drink excessively and generate harm to themselves or others.” With this statement she proves the point that binge drinking and alcohol abuse is

Alcohol is the world’s fifth leading risk factor for disease burden; however, alcohol consumption among adults is still a critical public health concern around the world (WHO, 2015b). There are many studies investigated alcohol use among university students in developed countries, but it still lags far behind in low and middle-income countries. A most comprehensive study of 17,592 students from 140 campuses by Henry Wechsler, a professor at the College of Alcohol Study (CAS), the Harvard School of Public Health in 1994 found that most of the students drank alcohol in the past year, and only 16% was nondrinkers, 44% were binge drinkers, accounted for 91% of all drinkers and almost 19% of the students who were frequent binge drinkers. These frequent binge drinkers were more likely to experience serious health and other consequences including injuries and unplanned sexual intercourse resulting from their drinking behavior than those nondrinker peers(Henry Wechsler, Andrea Dawenport, George W. Dowdall, Barbara Moeykens, & Castillo, 1994; Lindsay S. Ham & Hope, 2003). The strongest predictors for college binge drinking were the residence in a fraternity or sorority, adoption of party-centered lifestyle and other risk behaviors(Henry Wechsler, George W. Dowdall, Dawenport, & Castillo, 1995).