Letter to the Editor:
Prohibition of hazing is a necessity

Last week, The Rider News ran a story by Leo D. Rommel called “Girls gone wild?” I felt that the article promoted hazing and that he felt it isn’t a big deal. I feel that it is a big deal.

As the president of Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE) Fraternity at Rider, I find hazing against everything I believe. Hazing is defined as behavior that is humiliating, degrading and emotionally and/or physically harmful. Also, sometimes it is expected for someone to be hazed before he or she can be a full member of a team or organization.

I think the suspension of the entire team for hazing activities is right on. I do agree with Leo on the topic that it should be the same across the board; all teams should be treated equally when it comes to hazing incidents. That includes the big dogs like Northwestern.

Hazing doesn’t promote brotherhood or teamwork in the least. In fact, it does more to fracture a group and cause resentment toward the teammates or brothers that you should be trusting as an equal.

Several fraternities and sororities across the country have been put on probation, suspension or even closed completely for hazing activities. Phi Delta Theta Fraternity at the University of Illinois was suspended for just that in 2001. There have also been chapters at Rider closed in the past for the same thing.

As I said, I am in TKE and we have a zero-hazing policy that we enforce because a fraternity is a brotherhood meant to help each member grow and prosper, not make one another feel inferior.

Do I think all groups, athletic teams and fraternal organizations should be held accountable for their actions in hazing? Yes. Do I think there is an answer? Yes. And that answer is not just keeping the camera hidden.

—Kevin J. Brommer
President, Tau Kappa Epsilon