There has been a lot of heat, across the nation, about hazing within college communities. My school is no exception. In the midst of serious allegations and investigation, it is important to broaden the scope, and think about the consequences of abusive behavior. Drilled into the student body, administrators very loosely define hazing. Instead of focusing on what hazing is, placing a large umbrella over the term to include an almost too-large range of behavior, it would be more beneficial to consider the consequences, the adverse effects of hazing on the perpetrator, victim, and community as a whole.

As someone who went through the pledging process, was a member of a sorority and chose to leave, I have seen first-hand the kind of power politics used during the initiation process. Justified as forcing the new pledge class to bond through hardship, become closer friends under specific conditions, the two weeks of the pledge are typically filled with dread and fueled by fear and obligation. Pledge also serves to separate the weak from the strong. Having grown up with older brothers and being a thick-skinned person, being bossed around and verbally abused didn't phase me much. While being sworn at or criticized, I stifled laughter at the girls acting like bitches in front of me. I knew these girls, liked them and even applauded them for getting into their role so entirely. Not everyone has this same reaction. We all come from different backgrounds and circumstance, and instead of looking down upon girls that chose to quit or who cracked under pressure, I esteem them for refusing to be treated unjustly, and there is no reasoning that is valid contention against this. Those girls who cried after each night were called 'babies,' 'soft,' and not fit to join the self-proclaimed 'cool' group of girls that make up sororities like this one. Granted, there were positive elements during the pledge. However, they were few, and it was during these specific, non-hazing activities that I connected with the girls by my side. Genuine bonding was only felt during the time spent away from the older actives, or when the entire group let down their guards and phony bitchy personas to reveal their real selves. While it is true, in many cases, that a brotherhood or sisterhood is formed in times of struggle, forced to support each other, tightening bonds. However, the hardship should not be created on purpose for no other reason than to force relationships. These brotherhoods or sisterhoods were often formed in the trenches, escaping the natural disaster, violence or death. Surely, it does not propel the already stressed and vulnerable college student to take away their freedom and pressure them into submission.

I am not condemning the Greek system as a whole, for many groups do a lot of good for their communities. All groups do at least some volunteer work, philanthropy outreach, and provide opportunities for leadership to a wide range of students. However, it seems hypocritical that, while calling themselves supporters of the community and the student body as a whole, many sororities, and fraternities function primarily as an exclusive group of selected participants that spend most of their time together consuming copious amounts of alcohol. It is evident that college students are going to drink, throw parties, and let out young adult angst frequently. The way some sororities and fraternities go about this, unfortunately, causes them to be seen as elitist, snobby, and often judgmental.

The role of Greek life at my school and others should be seen by everyone to be more than the negative stereotypes depicted in the media. At Gustavus, the Greek system provides for many students life-long friendship, support systems, and the system cultivates collaboration and mutual respect among the chapters. The Greek chapters help to create an active student life, hosting recreational as well as educational activities for the entire campus. These positive elements are undercut by superfluous hazing practices and I feel that Greek life has the potential to be a wholly positive force, but respect must be earned, and hazing disrupts this for many people. The problem is not within any single individual, multiple people, or even within one group, but it is an overarching group attitude and habit that needs to be replaced with ideologies based on the communitarianism the Greek systems stand for, shown through caring action.

It seems odd and counter-productive, in our democratic society, now more than ever pushing for care ethics and social equality, that members of a sorority or fraternity are just in sitting down in a room, selecting candidates for the new pledge class by considering the potential member's personality, physical appearance, and more often than not, their homogeneity in regards to the rest of the group. Knowing that a girl is not welcomed in because one out of around fifty has a big personal problem with her seems the opposite of democracy. Serving as a platform for one's prejudice and cruelty to surface, selection night turns humans into beasts while the prey cowers in their dorm rooms, praying for their reputation, trying in vain to think back on any and all social encounters where they could have misrepresented themselves or been judged wrongfully. When someone is rejected, it is not because they didn't have the right qualifications for the job, or there wasn't enough space (in my communities case), but it indicates to the rejected person that they were simply not wanted, not good enough and not worthy of the chance to make friends and be further involved in the student and town community.

Some Greek groups are phasing out hazing. Realizing it is entirely unnecessary and counter to their intention of group building, pledge becomes something to look forward to. Instead of demanding certain actions and creating an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty, the only connection being made in the shared secret traditions, we should be reforming the mistakes of those in the past to create a more positive and accepting community. Show the new pledges how fun it can be if they put the time in and do the work that needs to be done, let them learn by example instead of by force, force that creates resentment and unnecessary negative associations of the process.

Most of the hazing done in Greek groups is minor, not physically or emotionally damaging to the individual, more of a slew of forced embarrassing and uncomfortable moments. While these small practices are still damaging and in need of eradication, the greatest concern should be the extreme cases. When I was made aware that a group on campus, made up of girls who I thought I respected, was seriously, emotionally abusing their pledges, I was dumbfounded. There is never justification for body-shaming and public humiliation. When I heard there was even a chance of validity to the alleged crime of pointing out individual physical 'flaws,' slicing skin with black marks of ink, to each new pledge member, I no longer wanted to associate myself with the entire institution that allowed or was unaware of this happening. It is heartbreaking that many girls went through this, possibly suffering from a damaged body-image that could lead to eating disorders, depression, or death and didn't speak out. It is disgusting that these same girls, perhaps vindictive, but more likely just going along with tradition, became the abusers. And it is unforgivable that people that knew that this happened, students that were not even members or affiliated with the particular group, and never revealed it, hiding behind some jaded sense of loyalty to members that would get a slap on the wrist. I don't believe there is such a thing as an innocent bystander. You become guilty when you are silent. Any punishment a perpetrator of horrific hazing practices like this is given is surely not more harmful than the consequence of their cruelty to the victim, scarred in a way that makes me feel sick even to think about. One can only hope that the coming years will bring growth, not degeneration to the student bod. No longer will a line of girls be forced under peer pressure to stand while those they are supposed to love tear them down, degrading and demoralizing them.

We live in an age of growing interdependence, globalization, and mass communication. Human rights, equality, and freedom of speech are at the center of social issues and this extends beyond to all communities. We as college students may not feel empowered or able to affect change, but it is within our own communities that we are called to voice our opinions and to take just action if necessary. It is not merely our ability, but is certainly our responsibility to do so.