Author: Hank Nuwer

Moderator:  This is a really well-thought-out essay. 

Excerpt: It goes beyond how hard we fought for our letters. It’s not the potential loss of authenticity/exclusivity that bothers us. It has to deal with more than the legacies of great leadership that we were built upon. Somehow, silently, Black society has allowed our most organic, collectively progressive and influential group of African American organizations to become taboo to criticize.  Even more insane is the idea that public conversations, which surround BGLOs, only happen when Divine Nine organizations are being criticized about cases of pledging and hazing. While I understand the emotional response of members who are upset at the “Tiny” misunderstanding, I also feel that the Divine Nine’s ability to grow its mission is heavily contingent on our ability to examine ourselves outside of the lens of entertainment and positively construct better representations of our culture. It’s a challenge I have personally adopted as an independent filmmaker trying to tell positive stories about our organizations. Sometimes I feel like Chris Rock when he said that he loves Hip-Hop music, but he’s tired of defending it. I love Black Greeks, but sometimes it’s hard to defend some things we do.  I could not defend someone who thinks that an appropriate response to Tiny’s hand gestures should be some type of punishment or verbal “checking.” It’s juvenile and extremely ironic when we consider that more and more the disrespect of our image is coming from members within our own Greek communities. – See more at: http://madamenoire.com/487199/a-tiny-misunderstanding-should-black-greeks-be-mad-at-tameka-harris/#sthash.7bqjfKX6.dpuf

Here is the link

Moderator:  There were minor injuries accompanying the hazing activities.

The Modesto Bee says that severe hazing at Hughson High involved the football team.

Excerpt

Stanislaus County sheriff’s Lt. Keith Rakoncza confirmed that his department is investigating an incident “at the high school involving students.”

“We are not releasing any information on the case at this time,” Rakoncza said in an email.

It is unclear when the incident occurred or how many students were involved. However, Huskies head coach George Harp has been placed on administrative leave, according to sources.

Harp would not confirm that Tuesday afternoon but said he was not on the sideline Friday when Hughson played Riverbank.

“I would rather not comment on anything at this time,” said Harp, a physical education teacher at Emilie J. Ross Middle School in Hughson and a graduate of Hughson High.

Here is the link to the Penn Hills change in policy. 

Link to the KRQE story Excerpt

The University’s internal investigation, obtained by KRQE News 13, says similar incidents with the women’s soccer team have gone on for years.

“This seems to have been an on-going ‘tradition’ that individuals take part in, as every student athlete who has been here for more than one year, stated they went through something similar,” the report says.

The report makes it clear that at least one coach either knew hazing had been going on for years, or should have known, saying there were “indications that assistant coach Krista Foo knew about this, as she went through it herself.”

Investigators add that they didn’t independently confirm those allegations, reported by the players.

The report says the hazing was a two and a half hour ordeal with drinking at two different house parties.

It says upperclassmen put signs with “inappropriate nicknames” on the players and wrote words on players bodies.

They were told to kiss the butts of the upperclassmen, and several did.

It gets worse from there, describing the team using frozen hot dogs to perform “inappropriate gestures.”