Robles 1 Jessica Robles Professor Altman English 115 November 18, 2013 Sororities and Hazing As a new freshman

in college one can be opened up to new, fun possibilities and experiences that are extremely different than high school. One new experience one might try is joining a sorority where sisterhood and friendship is a major benefit. However, there are some schools where the active members in sororities do dangerous activities to the pledges in order for the pledges to prove their loyalty known as hazing. While some girls believe that hazing in college is part of initiation into a sorority, others believe it is dangerous and immoral because it can lead to psychological problems, physical harm, and even death. One of the scary aftereffects of hazing is that it can cause long term psychological harm. A former pledge of Penn State named Joanne in 2010 in an article on ABC news said, The second semester I couldn't sleep because I would have nightmares," (Crowder). Joanne went on to say, They would test us on one of the sorority's prayers or songs, and if we got it wrong they would call us fat or ugly until we cried, Joanne said, "So many of us cried in front of them," (Crowder). In sororities pledges are girls who are trying to get initiated into a certain sorority and active members are girls who are already initiated into the sorority. Girls tend to do their fighting with words rather than with physical violence so psychological harm is more common among sororities than in fraternities. Being called fat, ugly, a slut, or other forms of verbal harassment repeatedly by members who are supposed to be your sisters can have some serious effects. The harm can be devastating as it can lead to self-esteem issues, depression, and eating disorders. Verbal insults is just one way sorority members can cause emotional trauma to their pledges.

Robles 2 Psychological harm can be just as dangerous as physical harm and can cause just as much damage. Another form of emotional hazing is caused by active members of a sorority forcing pledges to abide by a set of rules or forbid them from performing certain acts. This can cause emotional distress since the rules can be degrading and lead to self-esteem issues and even harm. This can be seen through Nathan Crabbes article UF Sorority Suspended for Hazing in reference to University of Floridas Sigma Lambda Gamma chapter back in April of 2009. This article says, The chapter admitted to hazing violations that includes making pledges do physical activities such as push-ups and running. Pledges were required to follow 37 rules that included restrictions against taking shortcuts on campus such as using elevators or cutting through grass, (Crabbe). Even though this is not physically hurting someone it can still be psychologically damaging. It can cause pledges to stop doing normal everyday functions such as sleeping which can hurt ones health. Some rules even prohibit pledges from wearing make-up which can lead to self-esteem issues. While emotional abuse is very common in hazing in sororities, there can be instances of physical abuse as well. Physical abuse in hazing has always been common in fraternities, but within the past decade it has also become more popular among sororities. This type of hazing can be very dangerous and can cause serious damage on pledges who partake in hazing. It can lead to hospitalization and permanent scars both physically and emotionally on girls who are pledging. One form of physical abuse in hazing is branding a pledge with a symbol or symbols which represent the sorority. In an article by the Associated Press titled Prosecutor files charges in alleged sorority hazing back in 1997 girls who were being initiated into DePauw Universitys Kappa Kappa Gamma chapter were being branded with cigarettes. One girl had to be treated for burns after she had been branded (Associated Press). Getting branded as part of hazing is very degrading

Robles 3 because only cattle are meant to be branded so when a person is branded they are viewed as being cattle. Another popular form of hazing which can cause physical harm is known as paddling. Paddling is when an initiated member of a sorority repeatedly hits a pledge with a wooden paddle. This can lead to pledges being in so much pain that they cannot even sit down because their backsides are so bruised and sore. This can be seen through Cathy Burkes article Hazing Horrors at Rutgers Sorority back in 2010. The article says, But one of as many as seven alleged victims described a frightening nightly ritual of paddlings, saying she'd been struck 201 times between January 18th and Monday, (Burke) referring to Rutgers sorority chapter members of Sigma Gamma Rho beating their pledges. One girl even had to be hospitalized after being in so much pain that she could not even lie down (Burke). The physical abuse in hazing can even lead to death. There have been a few instances where hazing in sororities took a horrible turn and deaths occurred. One such instance happened back in September of 2002 in California State University Los Angeles sorority chapter Alpha Kappa Alpha. . An article titled Sorority Sued Over 'Hazing' Deaths by the Scotsman in 2002 tells of the horrific events that led to the deaths of two pledges who were trying to join the prestigious chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha. On the night of September 9th, 2002 two pledges, both in their early twenties, took part in a hazing ritual on Dockweiler State Beach where they were blindfolded, tied, and led into the ocean (Foreign Staff). The girls were found dead on the beach after, Waves 8ft high created a rip-tide that sucked them under, (Foreign Staff). This awful tragedy was accidental but is a scary reality of what can happen when hazing occurs. While hazing is becoming popular among sororities there are organizations which are trying to stop this terrible trend and prevent any more girls from being harmed by these acts.

Robles 4 Since hazing causes harm both physically and emotionally most people are opposed to it and are trying to stop it. While members of sororities initiate the hazing, their national organization do not condone it since it is not the type of behavior the national organizations find appropriate. National headquarters will usually punish a sorority chapter if they are caught hazing. The Sigma Lambda Gamma chapter at the University of Florida has been suspended from their campus until 2014 when their national headquarters found out they were hazing their pledges (Crabbe). This is one way in which they are trying to stop the horrible acts of hazing. Not every sorority or university take part in hazing either, since the repercussions if caught can be severe. If active members haze their pledges in a way which is illegal the members can be fined and even put in jail depending on the severity of the case. Six members of Rutgers Sigma Gamma Rho who beat their pledges with paddles back in 2010 were charged with felony aggravated hazing (Burke). While most people find hazing to be an insane act to go through in order to be initiated into an organization, some people find it normal. Those who find hazing to be a normal part of becoming initiated into a sorority are usually those who had to go through it themselves and believe it did more good than harm. John Hoover and Caroline Milner try to explain this phenomenon in their article, Are Hazing and Bullying Related to Love and Belongingness? They believe that pledges take part in hazing because, Through hazing, potential members prove their worthiness to become part of the group by complying with group edicts requiring performance of actions they would refuse to perform under other circumstances, (Hoover, Milner). Pledges think that since they go through hazing they show loyalty and they have a better chance at being liked and accepted into the sorority. Another reason pledges go through hazing and accept it is that they believe it will bring them closer to their pledge sisters (Hoover, Milner). This is because they think since they shared experiences of horrendous hazing their bond is tighter. While these explanations make sense,

Robles 5 those pledges who partake in hazing and believe it is normal in order to be initiated are crazy. Joining a sorority in college is meant to be a positive experience. One should not have to go through hazing in order to be initiated into a sisterhood which stands for friendship and love. Real sisters should not beat each other and verbally abuse each other in order to show their love. That is an insane way to think. I would not want to join a sorority where I had to be beaten physically and emotionally in order to be initiated. The sad truth is many girls do and most do not speak up about it. They live with the scars which hazing has left them and some accept it while others leave the sisterhood but never say anything in fear. Overall hazing is a terrible occurrence in sororities that needs to be stopped in full. While there are those who believe it is needed to be initiated, those girls are wrong. There can be other ways in which a pledge can show their loyalty without abuse.

Robles 6 Annotated Bibliography Burke, Cathy. "HAZING HORROR AT RUTGERS SORORITY." New York Post. New York Post Corporation, 28 Jan. 2010. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. This article talks about what can happen when hazing takes place. Pledges from a sorority at Rutgers University were beaten with paddles. One of them had to be hospitalized. This shows how brutal hazing can be when it gets physical. The members who were involved in the beatings were charged with felonies. Crabbe, Nathan. "UF Sorority Suspended for Hazing." Gainesville Sun. Halifax Media Group, 2 Apr. 2009. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. This article talks about how a sorority chapter at the University of Florida was suspended for hazing. The members forced their pledgers to do certain activities and forbid them from performing certain acts. This article shows how the National organization helps stop hazing in their sorority and shows that there are punishments for those who partake in hazing. Crowder, Courtney. "Sorority Hazing Increasingly Violent, Disturbing." ABC News. ABC News Network, n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. This article explains how hazing is abusive. It talks about how hazing can be emotionally abusive and gives examples of real girls who went through it. It talks about how it can lead to psychological damage. Hoover, John, and Carole Milner. "Are Hazing and Bullying Related to Love and Belongingness?." Reclaiming Children and Youth, 7.3 (1998): 138. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. This first talks about why young children bully kids at school if they are seen as being different. It then ties in how hazing in Greek life may be the result of having a need of belonging. This article looks at the psychological thinking of members who haze pledges as well as the pledges

Robles 7 themselves. The article says that those who go through hazing feel more connected to the group they are trying to get into, in this case sororities. "LexisNexis Academic & Library Solutions." LexisNexis Academic & Library Solutions. The Associated Press, 9 Dec. 1997. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. This article talks about the branding of girls in a chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma. The pledges were branded in part of an initiation ritual. One girl had to be hospitalized for burns. This shows the ugly physical abuse side of hazing. The members who took part in the branding were punished. Staff, Foreign. "Sorority Sued Over 'Hazing' Deaths." The Scotsman: 13. Sep 25 2002. ProQuest. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. This article is about two girls who were killed in a hazing ritual back in 2002. The girls were thrown into the Pacific Ocean blindfolded at night and accidentally drowned while trying to swim. This article shows how dangerous and deadly hazing can be. While sororities in the past have never really had a problem in hazing it is becoming more common. These two girls were forced to swim blindfolded in the Pacific Ocean in order to prove their loyalty and ended up dead.

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