Author: Hank Nuwer

Hazing can be hazing — only NON-CRIMINAL –if it technically does not fit the law. That’s at a judicial level where an organization might receive school sanctions only (perhaps suspension from social activities for a brief time).

But at the University of Albany, President Kermit Hall ruled hazing did not occur categorically for the following reason reprinted from the Times Union:

Albany president Kermit Hall said the team’s actions did not fit the school’s definition of hazing because there was no malice and no one was endangered physically or emotionally or stepped forward to press criminal charges.

Here is why he is partially wrong in my opinion: 1) The minute alcohol entered the equation, especially to an advanced level of impairment for first-year players, hazing was precisely what happened. The vast majority (more than 80 percent) of all hazing deaths involved alcohol, and I assure you–no malice was intended in nearly all (maybe even all) of these cases. 2) First-year players can enter “willingly” into an initiation and still have hazing occur. The unstated premise that the first-year players realize is that they won’t be accepted SOCIALLY on the team unless they go through the initiation with apparent good humor and some submissiveness.

It may be that the Albany initiation falls under the NON-CRIMINAL hazing category (although giving alcohol to minors males me question that also–though proving it without first-year player cooperation is another matter).

We know have had Iowa and U-Albany presidents make a decision that runs counter to what Greek advisers have been enforcing for years. When it comes to hazing, there are two tiers of justice at some schools–one for athletic teams and one for fraternities and sororities.

That is not only unfair, it’s educationally unsound.

Link is here

Objection to content noted by Chuck Eberly and Dan Bureau:

Dear Hank,
This announcement for the upcoming Hazing Audioconference is written in such a way that the content suggests hazing practices originated within fraternities and sororities and have now “spread” to other campus groups / venues. Thus, the advertisement subtly “blames” fraternities and sororities for the proliferation of hazing activites now found on college campuses (and elsewhere). As you know, I have read all of your books on hazing. Where it is documented that members of fraternities and sororities invented hazing, and that all hazing practices somehow can be attributed as generated from fraternity / sorority initiations? At the same time that fraternity / sorority leaders like Dan Bureau, Past President of the Association of Fraternity Advisors, and other of his colleagues work diligently to reduce and eventually eliminate hazing in fraternities / sororities, it would appear that the organizations are still being blamed as the source of all such practices.
I am reminded of the pronouncements of Vice Presidents of Student Affairs on college campuses in the 1980s, when the issue of “risk management” first emerged as a hot topic. Now as then, it appears that people find it convenient to blame a wider societal problem on a single, highly visible group of college students. The issue of high risk drinking was then and still is a campus wide problem, and campuses without fraternity / sorority systems have challenges to surmount due to their students’ high risk drinking. The issue of hazing was then and still is a campus wide (if not societal) problem, and campuses without fraternity / sorority systems still have issues with the occurance of hazing that have not been addressed.

Respectfully,
Chuck Eberly
Eastern Illinois University

Hi to all.

Thanks to Chuck for the mention. It has been a wonderful effort that
MANY folks have worked together to accomplish within AFA and numerous
other partners.

This blurb from PaperClip Communications may reflect just a lack of
knowledge by who wrote the description. I would imagine Hank and others
had little input on the content of the announcement.

I do agree that many in higher education perceive this to be a
fraternity and sorority community only issue. Those campuses without
fraternity and sorority communities have issues with hazing as well.

Hopefully the teleconference will be a well balanced view of the
collective issues of hazing in multiple forums. The list of persons
participating sounds great but none are fraternal movement experts, so I
would imagine the focus will be very much on groups outside of the
fraternity and sorority community.

Dan

Dan Bureau
Assistant Dean of Students
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
610 E. John St. 300 TSSB
Champaign, IL 61822

Smith and Moon and others influence bill’ passage: link

Letter from Debbie Smith follows:

Hi Matt Law Supporters

Wow what an emotional day we had yesterday as we waited for our bill to come up in the hearing.  The hearing room was filled with 35 Matt Supporters most dressed in there red and sporting their Matt Badges I paced the corridor outside the hearing room, a tab bit of a wreck hoping to just get through the morning without falling apart, reflecting on the prior days events.  We had spent the day lobbying for Matt’s Law

It seemed to go very well as we visited the offices of the Assembly Members of the Public Safety Committee trying to explain to their assistants the importance of Matt’s Law in hopes of getting a yes vote on Tuesday.  But we had one Assembly Member who actually came out and spoke to us because she wanted us to know how important she thought our bill was and that she believed in it but because it was a third strike felony she was having difficult time because she had vowed to her constituents that she would not vote for a third strike felony.

I loved the fact that she was so honest and felt so strongly about both Matt’s Law and her convictions that she came and spoke to us face to face.  She told us upon leaving that she had a lot of thinking to do that night.  As we left her office I made a vow of my own, to be positive and think positive thoughts so I hoped if we were unable to persuade her the next morning in the hearing that she would just abstain from voting all together and maybe we could come away with a 6 – 0 vote with one abstention.  Of course that was my positive thinking that we had already persuaded the rest.

We walked to the Capitol from our hotel room yesterday morning and all I could think of was please pass Matt’s Law through today, please abstain, please be able to speak, please don’t start crying, my mind was a whirlwind.  We arrived early and went up to Senator Torlakson’s office briefly and when we returned Matt’s Supporters were starting to gather outside the hearing room.  What a wonderful feeling, we had supporters ranging in age from 7 to 80.

When Matt’s Law finally got called we sat in front of the Assembly, our last chance to help them understand how important this law really is.  When we were finished speaking they ask for any of those in support and much to my amazement there was a line of representatives from the organizations that we had written to and called, had not only written their letters in support but had come to verbally give their support.  The tears were streaming down so many faces as voice after voice spoke into the mike stating whom they were representing and that they supported Matt’s Law.

When asked who was opposing there were NONE!  The vote was taken and Matt’s Law passed unanimously. LAST HIST. ACTION:  From committee:  Do pass, but first be re-referred to Com. on  APPR. (Ayes  7. Noes  0.) Re-referred to Com.on  APPR.  Next stop Assembly Appropriations this could take place between now and July 7th if not it will be in August, then the Assembly Floor in August before going to the Governor’s desk in September.

Our next letter writing campaign should be focused on the Assembly Appropriations Committee and this should start today since we are not sure when they may hear our bill.  There are 18 members in this committee and the chair of this committee is…

Judy Chu
State Capitol
PO Box 942849
Sacramento, CA 94249-0049

You can find all the committee member’s addresses on Matt’s site or by clicking this link  ACS Frameset7   here are their last names to get you started Chu (Chair), Runner (Vice Chair) Bass, Berg, Calderon, De La Torre, Emmerson, Haynes, Karnette, Klehs, Leno, Nakanishi, Nation, Oropeza, Ridley-Thomas, Saldana, Walters & Yee.

I apologize that I did not write this yesterday but as I stated in the beginning it was an emotional couple of days and by the time I returned home yesterday afternoon I was exhausted.

I wanted to thank everyone again for coming you really made a difference; your support gives me strength and is so appreciated.

If you didn’t notice the FYI above…

DATELINE has scheduled Matt’s story to air this Saturday, June 24th at 8pm provided it is not pre-empted.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, to everyone for all your wonderful support without all your hard work we would not be where we are today.  You should be so proud of yourselves this is a good thing you are doing.  Three more stops before our bill is a LAW.

“Hug your children and tell them you love them everyday.”

Love,
Debbie, MM
www.wemissyoumatt.com