Shutter Fraternities for Young Women's Good... Not Good!

This is the article that I read: Shutter Fraternities for Young Women's Good.

Many of you may be familiar with it already, but if you aren't, I suggest that you read this. Now. Do it.

I am outraged for multiple reasons because of this article. First, I am outraged that Liz Seccuro was gang raped; that is something that should not be wished upon anyone in any situation. I am also saddened that this event was done by fraternity men. But, more than anything, I am angry that Ms. Seccuro is blaming an entire community for an isolated event.

The Greek community has been targeted by Ms. Seccuro as well as the author of this article: "The Greek system is dedicated to quelling young men's anxiety about submitting themselves to four years of sissy-pants book learning by providing them with a variety of he-man activities: drinking, drugging, ESPN watching and the sexual mistreatment of women." What the hell are "he-man" activities? I don't know about you, but I know plenty of fraternity men who were never taught in their pledge period how to sexually mistreat women. I know plenty of fraternity men who were taught quite the opposite: many of them have walked me or a sister home after a night of drinking or after a long night spent at the library. They are taught to be gentlemen. I acknowledge that there are some who are womanizers. I met one this weekend whose actions made me sick to my stomach, and also made me ask my boyfriend why he was friends with a brother who acted that way.


 These exceptions to the rule are the people who make Liz Seccuro think that all Greek men are rapists or pigs or womanizers. BUT I have met independents, non-afilliated boys--I will note that distinction--who use drugs, who are alcoholics, and who watch ESPN. What are the differences, then, between them and other men? The mere fact that they are not Greek? That is absurd. The author later notes, "Can the mere presence of slur-chanting fraternity men really create an environment that robs young women of equal opportunity to education? Yes, it can."

No, it doesn't. I hate to be rude or blunt, but non-Greeks have committed rapes. Non-Greeks have called women horrible slurs. Non-Greeks have done all that and more. So, why isn't the author attacking them as well? If we let men call us sluts, we are demeaning ourselves. If we let men treat us poorly, then we are doing nothing but working against empowering ourselves. It's our own damn fault. How do we fix that? We don't let anyone call us sluts or hoes or slampieces. Whether they are Greek or non-Greek, it is our responsibility to tell them that what they are doing is not okay! The answer is not to shut down fraternity life.

But that is what the author argues. She claims that, "If you want to improve women's lives on campus, if you want to give them a fair shot at living and learning as freely as men, the first thing you could do is close down the fraternities." Literally this made me upset. If the problem is men, then it's not just fraternity men! Let's take all men out of colleges. We would really have an advantage then. But the author's bias is against fraternities, against many people who are my friends and who are some of the nicest, smartest, most-involved gentlemen in the entire world. I just wish that people would be more open-minded and realize that issues like the one the author and Ms. Steccuro experienced are not just limited to one demographic.