Going through formal Greek recruitment is intended to be a happy time. It's when you find your home, your best friends, and you can finally wear those Greek letters you've been aching to wear. When you're in college, you think you're invincible.
Hazing is defined as the action of hazing; especially: an initiation process involving harassment.
In early February, Timothy Piazza had just received a bid to Beta Theta Pi at Penn State. They had "run the gantlet-- a series of stations where they guzzled beer, wine, and vodka as fast as they could." Piazza fell down the stairs after "excessively drinking but no one called for help for more than 12 hours, according to police." He tried to stand up several times but would fall and hit his head. His fraternity brothers "stepped over him." Eventually, Piazza fell down the basement steps and was not found until the next morning. 'When fraternity members found him, unconscious, cold to the touch, and
with blood on his face the next morning, it was more than 40 minutes
before they called 911."
"Eight fraternity members were charged with involuntary manslaughter.
Other charges included hazing, aggravated and simple assault,
alcohol-related violations and evidence tampering."
Hazing is a serious problem within both sororities and fraternities. 44 out of 50 states have laws against hazing. Those without hazing laws include Hawaii, Montana, Alaska, New Mexico, South Dakota and Wyoming. Unfortunately, hazing continues in states that have laws against it. It will continue as long as these organizations only get a "slap on the wrist."
Each school needs to have the proper repercussions to avoid these kinds of situations.
It is unfortunate that situations like these bring such negative attention to Greek life.
Hazing doesn't define Greek life. Not every fraternity and sorority does it. Because most sororities and fraternities require a minimum GPA to join and to stay active, students involved in Greek life tend to have a higher GPA than those not Greek. The all-Greek average — which includes organizations in the
Interfraternity Council, the Multicultural Greek Council, the National
Panhellenic Council and the Panhellenic Council — was 3.32, while the
total undergraduate GPA was 3.20.
Greek life also does incredible philanthropic work. In 2014, Thought Catalog wrote: "85% of the executives of Fortune 500 companies were Greek; All but 2 of
our presidents since 1825 have been Greek; The overall Greek GPA is
higher than the overall collegiate GPA; 20% more Greeks graduate from
college than do non-Greek students; As undergraduates, Greeks raise over
$7 million per year for charity."
Ultimately, Greek life is not the problem-- it's the people in it.