It is no question that Greek life, and more commonly, fraternities, have a less than adequate reputation in society and the media. After a discouraging year for anyone in support of the Greek system at colleges and universities, it can be hard to argue against the stigma that all “frat boys” are conceited savages who do nothing but party. Issues with hazing, rape, racism, and excessive consumption of alcohol involving fraternities were brought to national attention more frequently than once a month this past year. At the University of Virginia there were heavy accusations of rape inside the Phi Kappa Psi house that eventually lead to an article in the Rolling Stone. At the University of Oklahoma, their Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapter was caught on film performing blatant racist chants with mentions of lynching black Americans. Tragedy struck West Virginia University as a pledge of Kappa Sigma died in the house basement due to severe hazing rituals, adding to the alarmingly long list of pledge deaths in fraternity history.

To ignore such detrimental behavior and dismiss it as a simple accident or “boys being boys” would be nothing short of idiotic. Death, rape, and lynching are never to be taken lightly and regrettably are a real issue that we must deal with. Unfortunately there is something about frat culture that encourages boys to be a part of the problem. Or maybe there are just a few bad apples that all gravitate towards fraternities and make a bad name for the organizations. Regardless, the news begins to look and sound like a broken record when appalling incidents continue to occur within fraternities across the country, which is exactly what has been happening this year, and for many years before it.

As a member of a fraternity, it is difficult to sit back and watch what seems like the beginning of the end for Greek life on American college campuses. I am part of a Greek organization that has been nothing but a positive for me, but every week I see another chapter engaging in feuds with its respective administration because of unacceptable conduct. However, it can seem somewhat biased and prejudicial when hearing of the discipline that colleges and universities administer on Greeks. Even with the frequency of fraternity scandals, it is a small minority that is responsible for the negative stereotypes associated with all fraternities. For active organizations on college campuses it would understandably be frustrating to be held on a tight leash because of the mistakes of others. Naturally, many have lead to protesting and playing the victim card as they accuse the administration of being oppressive and hindering the independence of them as college students.

I often agree with people who are angry because of the expectations that society has for Greek organizations. It certainly can feel like school administrators do not want college students, Greeks in particular, to have any fun, and will get us in trouble for the most minor breach of conduct. Sometimes having fun leads to breaking school rules and the law (specifically underage drinking), which is not excusable. Laws are laws, and everyone is expected to abide by them. Unfortunately the “Just let us party” argument is not quite enough. However, it is no secret that parties do go on at college campuses and it is upsetting because it seems as though fraternities take all the heat for this issue that many other (non-Greek affiliated) students take part in as well. Frankly, that is an annoying truth that seems to be deflating Greek life nationwide, but in the wake of the horrific events that we have seen occur at fraternities it just seems wrong to emphasize such a trivial issue.

It is true that Greek life can have a positive influence on society, and people often argue about the importance of “philanthropy” and how Greek life is around solely to serve the community. In fact this may be true for many chapters, but that just doesn’t seem to justify a culture of binge drinking and sexual assault that we have seen emerging on college campuses. I would gladly sacrifice philanthropy if I could be sure that no pledges would die or no one would ever fall victim to rape.

Joining a fraternity for me had nothing to do with community service, or becoming an active member of the community, but instead was really just an outlet for me to become a part of a group on campus where I knew I could find friends. Many students out there can start to feel lost as they begin their college career, and fraternities and sororities can be a good place to get their feet back on the ground. Understandably, colleges do not want students finding solace in a place that will be such a bad influence and cause so much harm to others, and honestly neither do I. However, it is disheartening to see so many Greek systems slowly fading on college campuses because aside from all the debauchery, they provide students with an opportunity to be affiliated with something fun and meaningful. For some that simple affiliation is all that it takes to start a healthy, successful career at college. There seriously is a better solution than to just abolish all Greek life from existence.

That being said, it is up to all those involved with Greek life and no one else, to turn this culture into something that people on the outside would want to support. It is infuriating, and can be so easy to hold a grudge towards administrators, as it may seem they are always trying to thwart anything with Greek letters on it, but we cannot expect success with such poor relations. College is and always has been a time where young, intelligent scholars are provided with the tools they need to create progress for society. With a back and forth battle between students and administration, progress is not an option. Kicking fraternities off campus will not help anything, because students will always find a way to be rebellious and cause all of the same problems. Conversely, being rebellious and blaming administrators is just as harmful to the cause. It is hard to accept the fact that we must take the fall for others’ mistakes, but that is part of being involved with Greek life.

When you make your pledge to a fraternity or sorority, it comes with the understanding that you are to uphold and represent the ideals of that organization. There is not a single Greek society that openly supports extreme hazing, rape, underage drinking, or anything of the sort, so theoretically it should be all good and kosher. When someone makes a mistake it reflects on that given chapter, that fraternity or sorority, and even Greek life as a whole. If you live in a house with your Greek letters on the front, you where shirts with your letters embroidered on the chest, and hang out with others who do the same, people are going to start to label you by those letters. In light of all the stereotypes surrounding frat culture, it should not be alarming when you join a fraternity if people start to lump you in with the rest. You are expected to mess up, and some people might want to see you fail because of terrible things that others have done. The thing is, those people are connected to you because of your Greek affiliation. This stigma is exactly why it is more important for members of Greek life to be more careful of the rules than anyone else.

In my senior year of high school, a lady came to talk about the hook up culture in college and how it leads to a disturbing number of sexual assaults on campus. The one part of her talk that I remember the most however, is when she remarked on her time doing the same talk for various fraternities at colleges across America. Everyone in the audience expected her to tell of ignorant party boys who were oblivious to the simple concept of sexual consent, but it was the exact opposite. She was astounded at the level of awareness within many fraternities and how thoughtful some of the responses from boys in the fraternity were. She ended up shamefully confessing to the boys that she thought they would be less informed, and fortunately they took no offense. One boy spoke out and casually told her that because of all the negative stereotypes about fraternities, they must be more cautious. They took responsibility and made sure that everyone associated with the fraternity knew what to do, and what not to do in order to ensure the safety of the chapter and improve overall campus safety.

Whoever these anonymous frat boys are, they express the exact behavior that can lead to respect and trust from society towards Greek life. I have always felt that Greeks are unfairly held to a higher standard than anyone else, but I have come to accept that it is the price we must pay for the inconsiderate actions of others. Before a fraternity can be trusted, it must earn that trust and that is up to every single member. Unfortunately there are not articles in the Rolling Stone about fraternal philanthropy, community service, or any other good that comes from Greek life, but that should be the ultimate goal. We can argue all we want about the morals of fraternity brothers, but nothing will change until we show that we are not the barbarians we are made out to be.