Greek Letter Societies and Their Harmful Effects on Youth (2016)

GREEK LETTER SOCIETIES AND THEIR HARMFUL EFFECTS ON YOUTH Pelin DEMİRCİ Greek letter societies –known internationally as fraternities and sororities – are social clubs which have their own houses and are popular amongst college students, albeit controversial. Members believe that fraternities and sororities are beneficial to students’ social life, while non-member students look at those organizations in disdain and they have a solid reason to do so. Greek letter societies are harmful to youth because of their hazing rituals, their history of favoritism and racism, and the way that group psychology can have a negative effect. To start with, the hazing rituals practiced by fraternities and sororities are both mentally and physically violent and leave long-lasting effects on youth which are not accounted for by the members. Even though hazing rituals are illegal and are banned by the Greek organizations because of their violent and humiliating nature, different chapters keep holding them and many students come forward with hazing allegations. A variety of methods are used in hazing rituals, including forced binge-drinking, beating, sexual assaults and psychological abuse. Those can lead to alcohol intoxication, traumas to the head and chest, STDs (sexually transmitted diseases), depression, post-traumatic stress and poor self-esteem (Finkel 229). In addition, the violence used in most of the methods cause post-traumatic stress disorder in the long term because of their severity and memorability. There are even instances where the pledge died during a hazing ceremony, Tim Piazza from Pennsylvania State University died after he fell down the basement stairs following a forced binge-drinking ritual. His fraternity brothers did not take any emergency measures even after seeing his passed-out condition and waited nearly 12 hours before calling an ambulance (Flanagan 105). This example shows how far the hazing rituals can get and how the physical violence used can lead to death. Most of the charges against the members were dropped in Tim Piazza’s case, and on occasion, “cases that clearly constituted hazing according to the FDA’s definition were ruled nonhazing [sic] cases, and punishment was light or nonexistent” (Nuwer 33). As stated, the members who commit violence in hazing rituals are rarely criminally punished. To conclude, Greek letter societies have harmful hazing rituals which negatively affect the youth both psychologically and physically, and for which the perpetrators get little to no legal punishment. However, their harmful effects do not end at this point. Fraternities and sororities also have a long history of racism, and their members lean towards in-group favoritism. Greek letter societies have had reports and complaints about racism ever since they were first founded (McMurtrie A16). Hank Nuwer writes: “In attitude, Greeks resemble stereotypical nineteenth-century Southerners and frontiersmen, (…) who saw themselves as superior to blacks and greenhorns” (219). This attitude causes many societies to force their members to commit racist acts and many black fraternity and sorority members to feel discriminated against. In the University of Oklahoma, students were recorded singing a racist chant about how no black members were ever going to be in their society (Berrett 4). As can be seen in this example, racism has been ingrained in Greek letter societies. This is caused by the racism and slavery that took place in the past which Greek letter societies, because of their predominantly white member profile, did not manage to eliminate. Even though there are black societies to prevent black students from having to attend mostly-white societies and face discrimination, black students who are not members of black societies still face racism which predominantly white societies still show signs of, as seen in Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s University of Oklahoma chapter. Other than racism, fraternities and sororities also have a history of in-group favoritism where the members believe that Greeks are superior to non-Greeks. This is connected to the hazing rituals, where the ritual is seen as a “test” to see if the pledges are suitable for the society. Since all members have been hazed, they believe that the hazing experience separates a person from the others. “Individuals favor groups they belong to in order to increase their self-esteem” (Wells and Corts 845), so the members favor members when faced with a choice including a non-member student and this affects the non-member student body negatively. All in all, racism and in-group favoritism in Greek letter societies affect both the students that are members and the students who are not, whereas the members of societies face and inflict more than just racism. Fraternity and sorority members affect other members because of group psychology and peer pressure, and as a result, Greek letter societies become the nests of harmful habits. Students who are Greek report more cases of binge-drinking and have more alcohol-related problems than non-members and residents use more alcohol than non-residents. On average, the members exceed the alcohol levels deemed safe for drinking (Brown-Rice and Furr 354). Fraternity/sorority members also “have higher rates of smoking and other tobacco use than nonmembers, and those that live in the fraternity/sorority house have higher rates of use than nonresident members” (Cheney et al. 275). As seen in the above examples, Greek membership is associated with higher rates of smoking and drinking. Members of a group affect each other, and drinking becomes a part of the society culture starting with the hazing rituals. Resident society members spend more time with other members, and they affect each other more. Therefore, members who smoke and drink affect other members too and may urge them consciously or subconsciously to start drinking/smoking. Nick Haben, who was a nondrinker originally, died from alcohol overdose during a drinking game that was amongst the lacrosse club’s entry requirements (Nuwer 134). This shows that even the desire to be a part of a group can affect a teenager, let alone the pressure which comes with seeing every one of their “brothers” or “sisters” drinking/smoking and offering them a drink/cigarette. In summation, the high smoking and drinking rates amongst fraternity and sorority members come with the group psychology and peer pressure and affect teenagers negatively. In conclusion, Greek letter societies are not what they promise to be. Instead of peaceful environments that enable students to thrive academically and socially, they have become cults which have their own rules that are inconsistent with the law. For the protection of youth in America from hazing rituals and harmful habits and for the end of in-group favoritism and racism, it is clear that Greek letter societies are in need of a critical revamp.  Annotated Bibliography Berrett, Dan. "Stunned by a Video, U. Of Oklahoma Struggles to Talk about Race." Chronicle of Higher Education, vol. 61, no. 28, 27 Mar. 2015, p. 4. EBSCOhost This article talks about a racist chant the brothers of a fraternity at the University of Oklahoma were singing. It tells the story of how the event unfolds and the university’s reaction to the event as well as public reactions. The article is written in a story-like, opinionated way; however, since it is a piece of journalism the events which take place in the article (the part of the article that is most likely to be referenced) are real. Brown-Rice, Kathleen, and Susan Furr. “Differences in College Greek Members’ Binge Drinking Behaviors: A Dry/Wet House Comparison.” The Professional Counselor, vol. 5, no. 3, 2015, pp. 354–364., doi:10.15241/kbr.5.3.354. This essay is about scientific research on whether the use of “dry” (alcohol-free) house or “wet” (alcohol allowed) house in fraternities and sororities change the members’drinking habits. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT-C) was used in the research. The research gives information about how college Greek membership is associated with excessive drinking and how it is the norm for Greek members to consume alcohol even in “dry” houses. It also gives information about how many student deaths related to alcohol in Greek organizations occurs annually. The control group is large as well as the number of students questioned, which makes it a reliable source. Cheney, Marshall K., et al. “Smoking and Membership in a Fraternity or Sorority: A Systematic Review of the Literature.” Journal of American College Health, vol. 62, no. 4, Aug. 2014, pp. 264–276. EBSCOhost This study is a result of the analysis by elimination of nearly 390 research papers and/or articles in order to determine reliable sources about the relationship between college Greek organization membership and smoking. It includes a synthesis of study findings which include information about the relationship between membership and smoking. This study is very reliable because of the number of sources considered and the usage of 6 different databases. The information it gives is the result of extensive research. Finkel, Michelle A. “Traumatic injuries caused by hazing practices.” The American Journal of Emergency Medicine, vol. 20, no. 3, 2002, pp. 228–233. Google Scholar, doi:10.1053/ajem.2002.32649. This article connects hazing practices with the traumatic injuries they cause and the mechanism involved in the injury. It also contains a short list of the violent practices used in hazing rituals and how they affect the hazee. It also mentions the fact that there is an emergency protocol about hazing where the patients have to be treated as the victims of a violent crime. The article contains 17 citations from different sources despite its briefness, which makes it reliable. It was also written by a Harvard Medical School graduate M.D. Flanagan, Caitlin. “A Death at Penn State.” The Atlantic, Nov. 2017, pp. 93–105. “A Death at Penn State” is an article from The Atlantic magazine which covers a wide range of topics in its articles. The article tells the story of Tim Piazza, a fraternity pledge, who dies after falling down the stairs in the fraternity house during a hazing ritual in which he was made to consume a great amount of alcohol. It also gives an insight into the family’s trouble in their son’s court and funeral. This article shows how dangerous hazing rituals can be and how the fraternity members are able to escape from criminal punishment. It also talks about the struggles of Kordel Davis, a young black man in the middle of a white-majority fraternity. The article is written in a story-like way that gives the facts but also shows sympathy to Tim and his family. McMurtrie, Beth. “The Fraternity Problem.” Chronicle of Higher Education, vol. 61, no. 42, 8 July 2015, pp. A16–A21. Professional Development Collection. This article talks about the problematic sides of the fraternities, like how they act differently than the college administration’s expectations and how they are going against their original purpose. It also gives a short history of fraternities and gives a short list of fraternities that have decided to change their ways in the recent years. This article is opinionated against fraternities; however, it gives reasons about each of the opinions and the author supports her opinion with sources like statements from administrators. Nuwer, Hank. Wrongs of passage: fraternities, sororities, hazing, and binge drinking. Indiana University Press, 2001, books.google.com.tr/books?hl=tr&lr=&id=lHM9ltEQIU0C&oi=fnd&pg=PR11&dq=fraternities hazing&ots=Jr2miqN1R7&sig=6H6g_wgfMOSofj-ETpQgmed2rPk&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=fraternities%20hazing&f=false. This book covers a wide range of topics, from the dangers of hazing and binge drinking in fraternities and sororities to the hardships members and pledges face while trying to conform to the organization’s rules. It tells the story of many pledges who were forced to go through hazing rituals. It also includes the clashes sororities and fraternities have had with the authorities over hazing laws and the silent agreement between the universities and the Greek letter organizations. Since this book covers one argument of this essay, it is a useful source. Many parts of the book could be quoted while giving examples of the harmful hazing practices. It gives the names of the students who were victims of hazing incidents and the names of the universities as well as the incident dates, which makes it reliable. Wells, Brett and Daniel P. Corts. "Measuring Attitudes Towards Sorority and Fraternity Members: Indication of Implicit, Ingroup Favoritism." College Student Journal, vol. 42, no. 3, Sept. 2008, pp. 842-846. EBSCOhost This psychological research is about how non-Greek students associate Greek with “bad” and Greek students associate Greek with “good”. It also talks about how students have favoritism towards the groups they belong to which stems from the need to build their self-esteem. The research does not have a big group of participants, there are 50 in total. However as stated in the research, analyses indicate extreme high reliability for the test scores. Demirci 5 Demirci 1