Media outlets across the nation this week have been reporting on the untimely death of Caleb Wilson, a student at the historically Black institution Southern University in Louisiana, who was potentially the victim of hazing.
Wilson died on Feb. 27, and an SU representative has stated that they believe “unsanctioned off-campus activities” could be to blame. The 20-year-old was reportedly pledging to join the Beta Sigma chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity.
Despite state laws aiming to crack down on hazing, it’s no secret that it continues to happen on college campuses across America — including at Bradley. According to a BUPD police report from Oct. 28, a female student participating in the sorority recruitment process suffered a broken rib after being sat on and having full plastic water bottles thrown at her.
If we all know hazing is unlawful, immoral and often violent, why is it still happening? Hazing, whether it is recognized as such by those perpetrating it or being victimized by it, can be physical, psychological and/or emotional. Bradley’s Hazing Policy lists 26 acts that qualify as hazing, and those aren’t even all of them.
No one deserves to be terrorized in pursuit of joining an organization. Nothing about it is acceptable, nor is it, as some might justify, a rite of passage.
According to Bradley’s website, 30% of the undergraduate population on the Hilltop participates in Greek life. We’ll never truly know how many instances of hazing go unreported.
For a university like Bradley — which prides itself on its Greek life representation, having 30 sorority and fraternity chapters — to see these cases is incredibly disappointing and disheartening for both those overseeing these chapters and those participating in these acts.
The Stop Campus Hazing Act was passed by Congress in December, and criminalizing hazing at the federal level is certainly a step in the right direction toward decreasing these cases. Perhaps more intense punishment is needed to set the precedent that hazing will not be tolerated, especially since state laws vary on the level of consequences students face.
According to the Illinois Statute of Hazing, Section 120-1, anyone who commits the act of hazing could be charged with a Class B misdemeanor.
In the larger scope, as a community, Greek organizations need to take an honest look in the mirror. No one with a beating heart should humiliate and torment their peers — not for fun, not for a recruitment process, not because they “went through it too,” not at all.
Unfortunately, the more that laws crack down on hazing, the more secret these practices become. It might appear impossible to catch every perpetrator, but one of the easiest ways that members of a sorority or fraternity can stop hazing is to be the one to stand up for what’s right.
Whether you’re the one watching someone you know haze others, perhaps too scared to intervene, or you are the victim unsure how or if you should speak up, we all must acknowledge that hazing is not okay and should not be normalized.
To report hazing incidents in a student organization, Greek organization, athletic or club sports team at Bradley, locate the appropriate contact here.
There shouldn’t be any more students that suffer like Wilson did. No more excuses, no more cover-ups, no more broken ribs. Not at Bradley, not anywhere.