Fraternities at Hopkins: Unanswered Questions

Last week, this very publication published a front-page story on fraternity hazing “allegations” at Hopkins. First, lets be real: every frat probably hazes. What we call hazing here would be considered an utter joke at “real” frat schools, but that’s beside the point. According to the Office of Student Life, “deprivation of privileges granted to other members” is considered hazing. Isn’t that what it means to be a pledge? I am not in a fraternity, so perhaps I’m mistaken. Another: “expecting new members to perform personal services to [older] members such as carrying books, cooking, cleaning etc.” Does that actually count as hazing?

The administrative response to hazing complaints was insufficient. They know that these things are going on, and if they don’t, I don’t really know what to say. When students pledge, they do it knowing that there is a chance of hazing. They willingly undergo the hazing, knowing that they can back out at any time. Peer pressure exists, surely, and if you can’t say no, that’s on you, but I assume that Hopkins students are smart enough (too optimistic?) to know their limits and recognize an unsafe scenario. In the end, eating a ton of condiments, maybe the occasional live goldfish and doing wall-sits won’t scar you for life.

If the University is going to take action, there should be a focus on frat houses. I have been to my share of frat house parties. I have winced as three huge shirtless dudes tried to bear hug each other without realizing I was between them. I have felt the condensed sweat rain down on me from the basement ceiling. It is these basements that offer the most serious threat to student safety out of any aspect of Hopkins. What, I wonder, is the fire marshal’s capacity prescription for any of these basements? No doubt far lower than the amount of people regularly packed in. What if, let’s say, a gas line broke and ignited during a large party. The only exit, in some cases, is a one-way stairwell slippery with booze and sweat. Result: death. Result: the school could get sued for an insane sum that could damage a reputation.

The Hopkins administration may sometimes turn a blind eye to the typical, illicit activities on campus, such as drinking and hazing. However, they hire a full time staff member to ensure student safety and neighborhood relations. Ignorance is no excuse in this circumstance. The physical and emotional safety of the student body should be priority number one, and the administration backed up that commitment in its response to the hazing allegations. I call on the Office of Student Life to either step up and review the safety standards of all “frat houses,” or say “Hey, we know hazing is going on, and we have tolerated it for years like basically every other school with frats.” These cannot be mutually exclusive issues, and it’s high time the student body took a stand on the safety of our peers and ourselves.