A recent Daily News article reported that a St. John’s student from the Staten Island campus nearly suffered kidney failure after being stomped on while doing pushups in a Sigma Chi Upsilon fraternity hazing ritual.
Members of the frat then picked up the student and threw him into various objects.
In light of this situation, the Daily News reported that the University rightfully suspended the organization and went even further, barring new members from entering into the 11 other fraternities and sororities on the Staten Island campus.
What Sigma Chi Upsilon did was horrible, disturbing, and outrageous. But what’s most disappointing is that fraternities like Sigma Chi Upsilon – ones that conduct violent hazing rituals – hurt the reputation of Greek Life. The media often highlights the negative aspects of some fraternities and sororities and overlooks the positive attributes of these noteworthy collegiate organizations.
The media pounces all over Greek Life, sticking only to the negative headlines. This often unfair portrayal of Greek Life has led many to believe that fraternities and sororities are simply operators of college-styled torture rooms.
By only reporting about unfortunate hazing incidents, most non-Greeks view Greek organizations only under a negative context and fail to see the charitable deeds of these groups.
For example, Kappa Phi Beta sorority raised funds this past year for Campus Ministry’s service trips to developing nations such as Panama. The Iota Nu Delta fraternity recently participated with the South Asian Marrow Association of Recruiters, an organization that seeks to help people register in becoming prospective bone marrow donors.
These groups are among the many Greek organizations that dedicate themselves to impacting the community in a positive way. It is unfortunate that most people never hear about these outreaches. The majority of Greek organizations, both on campus and nationwide, work towards raising money for philanthropic and charitable organizations.
Greek organizations have found themselves constantly defending their common image, which is defined solely by their methods of hazing.
Those who wish to join a Greek organization are turned off from doing so due to the hazing incidents. The organizations then find themselves as being seen as something dangerous rather than being a crucial and positive part of campus life.
Fraternities and sororities need to tone down their sometimes ridiculous hazing rituals. The outrageous actions of Sigma Chi Upsilon, for example, should be condemned to the fullest.
They should not, however, be allowed to cast their ugly shadow over the good efforts of other Greek organizations.
