A fraternity chapter last week was suspended one hour after a post to Twitter went viral. What on God's green Earth could shut down a whole chapter in under 140 characters?
The thirty second video that was supposedly "leaked" (and when I mean leaked, I mean some idiot posted it online) featured the Alpha Tau Omega brothers forcing a hopeful pledge to preform oral sex on an exotic dancer. Graphically, the video depicts a possibly non-consensual act on a lonely mattress, shirtless guys watching on without speaking up.
Accordingly, the national CEO of the fraternity released a statement condemning the actions, calling it "highly offensive". A statement was then released:
Then, Indiana University promptly tweeted:
"Culture of care"? Is this a recently developing culture, one that wasn't present when Alpha Tau Omega was accused of a kidnapping slash abduction in 2012 and a rape in 2013? Because when one is truly committed, illegal actions and reactive discipline on this level shouldn't happen... again, and again, and again.
When a chapter is nicknamed the "the rape house", we should get serious if we haven't already. Though they're trying to take precaution, hazing around other fraternities is still an issue. This one just happened to come to surface.
Still, some support hazing. It is said to have a specific point or lesson, a true test of commitment combined with tradition. However, team building exercises can fill that place instead of encouraging the degradation and humiliation of other fellow humans. Hazing is in fact reported to decrease group cohesion and in fact increase compliance to norms of the group, unequal to true loyalty and togetherness.
Compared to sorority hazing, fraternity hazing is reasonably more likely to be sexual, painful, and illegal. Maybe this is because of "true brotherhood" (even against the law) or a masculinity complex. Afraid to be labeled as weak, this problem is more than just the fraternities and how schools handle the situation.
Though there is a outright clear problem with this level of hazing, or hazing in general, the problem can be perhaps be worked on earlier on. Or can it? Society's unrelenting push for a macho-man-like complex on men can subconsciously push these violent endeavors onto fraternity members. Sure, the public can see the tree, the promenading video of the members, but maybe consider the root of the problem.
A line was crossed, whether by legality or morality. The members were reprimanded. But will others continue to cross said line for "brotherhood"?
