It plagues our schools. It endangers our bodies. It damages our brains. It scares our youth. It’s happening right now. It’s happening behind closed doors. It may be happening to someone you know; someone you love. It needs to stop. It is… Hazing!
According to Hazingprevention.org, hazing is defined as “any action taken or any situation created intentionally that causes embarrassment, harassment or ridicule and risks emotional and/or physical harm to members of a group or team, whether new or not, regardless of the person’s willingness to participate.”
The sheer thought of hazing another human being disgusts me but hearing the horrific stories that plague our media make me nauseous. I will never understand how forcing someone into any embarrassing or harmful action helps to determine if he or she can be associated with a specific organization.
You often hear people claim “it brings the organization closer” but this is an absolutely absurd excuse for “bonding.” If you want to create stronger bonds between your members, you have thousands of other options that won’t cause physical or mental damage.
Being a new member or a younger member of an organization is scary enough because you don’t know anyone or don’t know the ins and outs of the organization. Having to worry about the possibility of being hazed only deepens that scared feeling. I know that when I join a new organization I am shaking from nerves for the first several encounters with the older members.
Luckily, I have never experienced hazing within any organizations I have been apart of and I am truly thankful for that. I have been welcomed with open arms into each of the organizations I am apart of and will uphold that warm welcome as an older member of these organizations. Having such positive experiences in my organizations has given me hope that the initiation or welcoming process will become more about educating new members and not about having the new members “prove” themselves.
I have one piece of advice for anyone who is currently being hazed. Please stop and think about what this organization is asking you to do. Answer this one question. Is membership in this organization and these “friendships” worth your mental and physical well-being? I truly hope the answer is no. Your health is worth more to you and those who love you than your membership in this organization and the “friendships” you may gain from joining. Please consider seeking help if you feel that you are being hazed. Hazing is not a rite of passage and it will never make you “one of them.” It will only make you less of yourself.
I have one piece of advice for anyone who is currently hazing another individual. Stop this. It is a vicious cycle that is ruining our youth. Our generation can stop this. We can create an atmosphere that revolves around love, respect and appreciation instead of hatred, disrespect and fear. Think of your little brothers and sisters. Would you want this happening to them? I, again, truly hope that the answer is no.
Hazing does not only have a negative connotation: It has a negative impact, as well. These actions have consequences and these consequences ruin lives. Hatred only spreads more hatred. Start with love so that love will spread.
