College fraternity

{{bronze}}[[File:Skull and Keys initiation (University of California, Berkeley, ca. 1899).jpg|thumb|right|250px|{{wpl|Skull & Keys||,}} an offshoot of Theta Nu Epsilon: c. 1899 initiation, including [[cross-dressing]] and [[blackface]]]]
{{crimenav}}
{{cquote|You don't need a [[secret society]] in a nation that already gives you the [[First Amendment|right to speech and assembly]]; in fact it's counterproductive for an open [[democracy]] to have them. Besides, if fraternities were all about [[charity]] and openness they'd just be like every other college group on campus, and hundreds of thousands of college students are not lining up to rush [[Amnesty International]].|||Andrew Moisey<ref name=gaskins>[http://archive.is/87G4f#selection-199.77-199.89 Boys to Men: A Conversation on Fraternity Culture and Toxic Masculinity with Bill Gaskins and Andrew Moisey] (Nov 29, 2018) ''Exposure Magazine'' (archived from 25 May 2019 00:21:30 UTC)</ref>}}
A '''college fraternity''' is a social fraternal organization based in a college or university with membership limited to students and alumni. The concept originated in [[America]], based in part on older fraternal orders such as [[Freemasonry]]. 

The first college fraternity was Phi Beta Kappa, which was founded in 1776 at the College of William and Mary.<ref>[https://www.achsnatl.org/warren2.asp Historical Information] by John W. Warren et al. (2000) ''Association of College Honor Societies''.</ref> At some point in the early 19<sup>th</sup> century Phi Beta Kappa evolved from the prototypical fraternity into an academic honor society. Phi Beta Kappa, as the model for future fraternities, in turn derived its structure from Freemasonry, including secrecy, initiation, oaths, and rituals.<ref>[http://tnlor.org/?p=24&print=pdf Freemasonry and the Development of Greek-Letter Fraternities] by David E. Stafford (2006) ''The Plumbline'' 14(3). Tennessee Lodge of Research, Scottish Rite Research Society.</ref> In 1825, the longest extant college fraternity was established at Union College, the Kappa Alpha Society.<ref name=flanagan>[https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/03/the-dark-power-of-fraternities/357580/ The Dark Power of Fraternities: A yearlong investigation of Greek houses reveals their endemic, lurid, and sometimes tragic problems—and a sophisticated system for shifting the blame.] by Caitlin Flanagan (March 2014) ''The Atlantic''.</ref>

The early fraternities formed to escape control by overbearing college administrators.<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|14}} Subsequently, fraternities have existed to create and maintain [[privilege]]. As such, they are anti-democratic,<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|235}} and have been among the last opponents of slavery abolition (though this was primarily among Southerners),<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|68-70}} higher education for women,<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|172-174,244-246}} and desegregation,<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|251,259}} as well as being bastions of overt racism (e.g. as expressed by blackface).<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/11/us/blackface-fraternity-cal-poly.html Blackface Leads to Fraternity Suspension at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo] by Matthew Haag (April 11, 2018) ''The New York Times''.</ref><ref>[https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/investigations/2019/02/20/blackface-racist-photos-yearbooks-colleges-kkk-lynching-mockery-fraternities-black-70-s-80-s/2858921002/ Blackface, KKK hoods and mock lynchings: Review of 900 yearbooks finds blatant racism: In one of the most extensive searches of college yearbooks ever, we found blackface and Ku Klux Klan photos like Ralph Northam's far beyond Virginia.] by Brett Murphy (6:43 a.m. PST Feb. 21, 2019) ''USA Today''.</ref>

The fraternities of the 19<sup>th</sup> century frequently included literary exercises and debating as part of membership activities, but by the turn of the century, these aspects had been dispensed with entirely.<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|28-29,149}} By the 1950s, some fraternities had actually become [[anti-intellectual]].<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|229-233,236,247}}

Ostensibly, fraternities act as [[Charity|philanthropic organizations]], but this has been overstated.<ref>[https://www.chronicle.com/article/Fraternities-as-Charitable/242432 Fraternities as Charitable Powerhouses? One University’s Numbers Suggest Otherwise] by Sarah Brown (February 02, 2018) ''The Chronicle of Higher Education''.</ref> Fraternities also act as [[Nepotism|nepotistic]] employment networking organizations for their membership.<ref>[http://archive.is/Fhwxd Secret Handshakes Greet Frat Brothers on Wall Street] by Max Abelson & Zeke Faux (December 22, 2013, 9:00 PM PST) ''Bloomberg'' (archived from 8 Jun 2018 02:13:29 UTC).</ref><ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|303}}

==Problem behavior and the aftermath==
The problems caused by college fraternities are not restricted to colleges or to fraternities. Organizations that have hazings (military, sororities, and even Masons) have had hazing-associated deaths.<ref name=nuwerdeaths/> A combination of traits associated with college fraternities is likely the cause for the frequent problems: wealth and [[privilege]], unsupervised young men, alcohol abuse, and secrecy with implicit blackmail. Indeed, Sage Carson, project manager for Know Your IX, said, "Fraternities are set up to support behaviors of [[toxic masculinity]]."<ref name=lawson>[https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/ywx4q5/fraternities-hazing-video-syracuse-toxic-masculinity Frats Will Never Be Anything but Hotbeds for Toxic Masculinity: The extremely racist and sexist video involving members of a Syracuse University fraternity that surfaced this week is just one recent incident in a long line of similarly offensive—and often dangerous—behavior.] by Kimberly Lawson (Apr 19 2018, 11:00am) ''Vice''.</ref> Colleges have frequently tried to dissociate or remove "bad" fraternities from campuses, but this has rarely solved the problem behavior. In 2013, Wesleyan University unsuccessfully tried to force all three of its fraternities to accept female residents (not as members). Two accepted and the third (Beta Theta Pi) ended its formal association with Wesleyan, but retained its membership within the university and the problems that it continued to cause.<ref name=flanagan/> Reform campaigns against fraternities have been difficult:
{{cquote|No sooner has a new 'Men of Principle' or 'True Gentlemen' campaign been rolled out — with attendant workshops, measurable goals, initiatives, and mission statements — than reports of a lurid disaster in some prominent or far-flung chapter undermine the whole thing.|||Caitlin Flanagan<ref name=flanagan/>}}

Though fraternity constitutions and rules often appeal ideals to [[chivalry]]<ref name=pbp>[https://archive.org/details/historyofpibetap00helmrich/page/n8 The History of Pi Beta Phi Fraternity''] by Elizabeth Allen Clarke-Helmick (1915)</ref>{{rp|208}} and honor,<ref name=pbp/>{{rp|74}} the reality of fraternity behavior is often different.<ref name=moisey>''The American Fraternity: Psi Rho Ritual Book'' by Andrew Moisey (2018) Daylight Books. ISBN 1942084552. Includes facsimile term paper by Justin F. Romberg (pseudonym), "How to be a Man amongst Brothers".</ref>{{rp|36,66}}

It is not really possible to ban fraternities in the [[Democracy|democratic]] societies because of {{wpl|freedom of association}} (the [[First Amendment]] in the US) — and because many fraternity alumni are very generous to their alma maters — so the best solution seems to be suing fraternities into better behavior.<ref name=flanagan/>

===Hazing===
[[File:Hazing UC Berkeley.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A posed photo of hazing at the University of California, Berkeley, c. 1935]]
Fraternities share the common elements of secrecy (including rituals), an initiation process (rushing or recruitment, pledging or probationary period/associate membership, hazings, and initiation of full membership), and living in a common dwelling exclusively with members.<ref>[https://www.rit.edu/studentaffairs/fsl/fraternity-sorority-life/terminology Fraternity & Sorority Life: Terminology] Rochester Institute of Technology.</ref><ref>[https://abcnews.go.com/US/oath-silence-secret-world-fraternity-pledging-contributes-hazing/story?id=49877076 'An oath of silence': The secret world of fraternity pledging and how it contributes to hazing deaths] by Emily Shapiro (Oct 27, 2017, 4:36 AM ET) ''ABC News''.</ref> The concept of hazing new members to a group (as well as the criticism of it) is not restricted to fraternities, but is ancient and culturally widespread, dating at last as far back as [[Plato]].<ref name=nuwer2001>''Wrongs of Passage: Fraternities, Sororities, Hazing, and Binge Drinking'' by Hank Nuwer (2001) Indiana University Press. ISBN 025321498X.</ref>{{rp|90}} Nuwer defines hazing as:<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|xxv}}
{{cquote|An activity that a high-status member orders other members to engage in or suggests that they engage in that in some way humbles a newcomer who lacks the power to resist, because he or she wants to gain admission into a group. Hazing can be noncriminal, but it is nearly always against the rules of an institution, team or Greek group. It can be criminal, which means that a state statute has been violated. This usually occurs when a pledging-related activity results in gross physical injury or [[death]].}}

Scott Saucier, whose son died in a fraternity hazing and who then became an outspoken critic of fraternity hazing,<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|xix}} has described fraternities as [[cult]]-like because some aspects of fraternities overlap with cults: isolation, [[authoritarianism]]<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|44-45}} as well as sexual manipulation, violence and surrender of will during initiation. There is also evidence of [[bait-and-switch]] in pledging: fraternity pledge J. B. Joynt wrote in his notebook before he died, apparently from exhaustion during a night of coerced wrestling matches:<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|42}}
{{cquote|I've done too many dishes, too many pushups, and been bitched at by one too many brothers to quit now. I'm halfway there & I'm ready to do whatever it takes to get Phi Sigma Kappa letters.}}

In 2024, the United States passed a law that requires colleges that receive student aid to report statistics on hazing.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/12/29/anti-hazing-bill-adam-oakes/ President Biden signs anti-hazing bill advocated by a Virginia family: Higher education institutions with federal student aid will be required to publicly report hazing incidents.] by Nicole Asbury (December 29, 2024) '' The Washington Post''.</ref> Hazing incidents were often kept secret by fraternities and colleges to prevent bad press. The law also provides a uniform definition of hazing as:<ref>[https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/5646 H.R.5646 - Stop Campus Hazing Act] (2023-2024) ''United States Congress''.</ref>
{{cquote|any intentional, knowing, or reckless act committed by a person against a student (regardless of that student's willingness to participate), that (1) is connected with an initiation into, an affiliation with, or the maintenance of membership in, an organization (e.g., a club, athletic team, fraternity, or sorority); and (2) causes or is likely to contribute to a substantial risk, above the reasonable risk encountered in the course of participation in the [institutions of higher education] or the organization, of physical injury, mental harm, or degradation.}}

===Alcohol===
[[File:Fratboys.jpg|thumb|right|300px|It only looks like fiction… a scene from the movie ''American Pie'']]
It's probably obvious to anyone who knows anything about college fraternities that they are intimately tied to [[alcohol]] consumption,<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|248}} and so is essentially every shit-hit-the fan incident at fraternities:
{{cquote|If the [FIPG] manual were ''Anna Karenina'', alcohol policy would be its farming reform: the buzz-killing subplot that quickly reveals itself to be an authorial obsession. For good reason: the majority of all fraternity insurance claims involve booze—I have read hundreds of fraternity incident reports, not one of which describes an event where massive amounts of alcohol weren't part of the problem—and the need to manage or transfer risk presented by alcohol is perhaps the most important factor in protecting the system's longevity.|||Caitlin Flanagan<ref name=flanagan/>}}
Although one reason for joining a fraternity is supposed to be the making men out of boys, the reality is rather different:
{{cquote|The ones that go out every night to the bars and get drunk are seen as the most masculine guys in the house. They are the ones that exemplify what it is to be a man. You are often called derogatory names when you deny a shot or deny yourself a [[beer]]. The amount of verbal assault on your masculinity when denying a drink is unreal. Drinking in a fraternity is by far the most common activity that is done. It is the purest form of what it is to be a man.|||"Justin F. Romberg"<ref name=moisey/>}}

===Death and mayhem===
The first reported fraternity death was in 1873 from hazing at Cornell University.<ref name=nuwerdeaths>[http://www.hanknuwer.com/hazing-deaths/ Hazing Deaths: 1737-2019] by Hank Nuwer</ref> There has been at least one fraternity-related school death every year from 1961 to 2019 from hazing.<ref name=nuwerdeaths/><ref name=nuwer2018>''Hazing: Destroying Young Lives'' by Hank Nuwer (2018) Indiana University Press. ISBN 0253030048.</ref>

===Rapes and sexual assaults===
{{main|Rape}}
In 2014, there were 36 reported rapes or sexual assaults in US fraternities, roughly 3.6 per month (discounting summer break).<ref>[https://gawker.com/every-rape-reported-at-fraternities-this-year-1671299377 Every Rape Reported at Fraternities This Year] by Allie Jones (12/22/14 09:00AM) ''Gawker''.</ref> In 2018, there were nationwide "337 open investigations at 243 schools for possibly mishandling reports of sexual violence."<ref name=lawson/> Seventy-five documented incidents of fraternity gang rape occurred within a 6-year period, but for obvious reasons, this is probably an under-reporting. One fraternity member reported that "trains" (gang rapes) occurred once or twice a month at his fraternity.<ref>''Fraternity Gang Rape: Sex, Brotherhood, and Privilege on Campus'' by Peggy Reeves Sanday (1990) NYU Press. ISBN 0814779026.</ref>{{rp|90}}

Fraternity pledges have also been subjected to coercive, [[Sadism|sadistic]], and demeaning sexual acts during initiation, including paddling of buttocks and the "elephant walk" or "elephant drill".<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|35,125-127}}<ref>''Shade of the Raintree: The Life and Death of Ross Lockridge, Jr.'' by Larry Lockridge  (1994) Viking. ISBN 0670854409.</ref>{{rp|98-99}}<ref>[https://nypost.com/2019/02/07/frat-accused-of-forcing-pledges-to-do-the-elephant-walk/ Frat accused of forcing pledges to do the 'elephant walk'] by Jackie Salo (February 7, 2019 | 4:37pm) ''New York Post''.</ref> An official song ("Yo-Ho") at one fraternity even included lyrics of death by fellatio.{{efn|"…I laid her out in a pine wood box; She died from sucking an Alpha cock…"<ref name=moisey/>{{rp|146}}}}

A study of all first-year men at a public university looked at the effectiveness of a sexual assault intervention program known as The Men's Program (MP).<ref name=foubert>[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/230687915_Behavior_Differences_Seven_Months_Later_Effects_of_a_Rape_Prevention_Program Behavior Differences Seven Months Later: Effects of a Rape Prevention Program]] by John D. Foubert et al. (2007) ''NASPA Journal'' 44(4):728-749.</ref>{{rp|733-735}} Effectiveness of the program was judged using results of The Sexual Experiences Survey (SES).<ref name=foubert/>{{rp|736-738}} The study found that men who joined fraternities were more likely to commit sexually coercive acts during their first year in college (8%) than those who did not join fraternities (2.5%).<ref name=foubert/>{{rp|739}} Men who joined fraternities during their first year and who did not participate in MP were more likely to commit sexually coercive acts (10%) than those who joined fraternities and did participate in MP (6%) during their first year, which was attributable to those fraternity men who did not participate in MP.<ref name=foubert/>{{rp|740}} The study also found that men who participated in MP experienced a long-term decline in rape myth acceptance (the myth that women want to be roughed up, that women pretend not to want sex, or that sexually liberated women are promiscuous).<ref name=foubert/>{{rp|730,741-742}} Unlike many previous intervention programs, The Men's Program was effective in reducing the incidence of sexually coercive behavior.<ref name=foubert/>{{rp|742-743}} The authors of the study attributed the effectiveness of MP compared to previous programs to it being theory-based, data-based, [[peer-reviewed]], and flexible.<ref name=foubert/>{{rp|743}} A limiting factor for changing the sexual behavior of fraternity members is that there is evidence that the most sexually aggressive men tend to self-select towards joining fraternities.<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|278}}<ref>"An Examination of Sexual Aggression as a Response to Sexual Frustration" by Eugene J. Kanin (1967) ''Journal of Marriage and Family'' 29(3):428. DOI:10.2307/349577.</ref>

===Bigotry===
{{main|Bigotry}}
White fraternities have been racially exclusionary — even [[segregation]]ist — for much of their history. They have included racist, [[antisemitic]], [[homophobic]], and sexist elements into their initiation processes,<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|35}} and have long held racist theme parties.<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|45,219-220}}

One of the more perplexing aspects of fraternities is the often homoerotic aspects of initiation rituals but the expression of homophobia elsewhere.<ref name=gaskins/><ref name=syrett1>"Afterword" by Nicholas L. Syrett (2018) In: ''The American Fraternity: Psi Rho Ritual Book'' by Andrew Moisey Daylight Books. ISBN 1942084552.</ref>{{rp|188}}<ref name=syrett2>''The Company he Keeps: A History of White College Fraternities'' by Nicholas L. Syrett (2009) Chapel Hill University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 0807832537.</ref>{{rp|287-289,293-297}} The reason for this may have been because some fraternities before the 1920s were havens for [[closet]]ed gay men, but after the arrival of larger numbers of women on college campuses in the 1920s, the men felt obliged to aggressively express [[heterosexuality]] lest they be outed from their closets.<ref name=syrett1/>{{rp|188-190}}<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|203-207}} Anthony James has argued that the homoerotic aspects of fraternities increased following [[World War II]] ''because of'' increased public awareness of homosexuality<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|269}}<ref name=james>''The Defenders of Tradition: College Social Fraternities, Race and Gender, 1945-1980'' by Anthony W. James (1998) Ph.D. dissertation, University of Mississippi.</ref> (e.g., the founding of {{wpl|The Mattachine Society}} in 1950 and {{wpl|The Daughters of Bilitis}} in 1955). The increased homoeroticism was an attempt to humiliate pledges as much as possible, but at the same time it required compensation with more aggressive expressions of heterosexuality in social life.<ref name=syrett2/>{{rp|269,289-297}}<ref name=james/>

===Litigation===
Something that pledges, most fraternity members, and parents of fraternity members probably do not know until the shit hits the fan is that there are effectively no individual college fraternities, there is but a single college fraternity under a giant liability umbrella. This started in 1996 after individual fraternities became uninsurable after a series of lawsuits.<ref name=flanagan/> Thirty-two fraternities now belong to the Fraternity Risk Management Trust (FRMT), a self-[[Insurance in the U.S.|insurance]] fund.<ref name=flanagan/><ref>[http://archive.is/2JqHe About FRMT, Ltd.] (archived from 26 May 2019 05:21:47 UTC).</ref> It doesn't sound very glamorous or exclusive to say that one belongs to the FRMT, so the fraternities have kept their names and one can still claim that one belongs to Kappa Alpha or whatever. A consequence of the establishment of the FRMT is that it is all about self-preservation as a trust, not preservation of individual fraternity members or even individual chapter houses.<ref name=flanagan/> Just like any insurance fund, they don't want to have to pay out if they don't have to, and that means finding blame somewhere else. In 1987, the Fraternal Information and Programming Group (FIPG) was also created to minimize risk.<ref name=manual>[http://archive.is/DCf1i FIPG Risk Management Manual] (January, 2013) FIPG, Inc. (archived from 26 May 2019 05:45:12 UTC).</ref>{{rp|4}} The FIPG produces a 50-page manual for individual fraternity houses to follow.<ref name=flanagan/><ref name=manual/> Two of consequences of this are 1) that parents of a dead or injured child are likely to be notified of the incident by a coroner or hospital 2) national consultants show up and tell the fraternity members to each fill-in questionnaires about the incident and to be completely honest and forthcoming.<ref name=flanagan/> This second part basically means that — without the presence of a lawyer — frat bros are encouraged to either self-incriminate or rat on their fellow bros depending on their involvement. This often enough lets FRMT off the hook for financial damages, and can put parents on the hook. One lawyer who specializes in fraternity law said, "I've recovered millions and millions of dollars from homeowners' policies."<ref name=flanagan/>

The combination of pledging secrecy and the initiation process has traditionally acted as an implicit blackmail threat for members not to reveal misdeeds of their fraternity brothers.<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|35-37}} For example, pledges and alumni are sometimes required to sign "vile, sexist pledge books".<ref name=nuwer2001/>{{rp|35}}

==Goats==
As with the Freemasons, fraternities have occasionally been associated with goats. Tom Earp, a Lambda Chi alumnus, wrote for the fraternity newsletter about this association. Earp concluded, perhaps with some [[bias]], with a rather benign explanation that it is based on {{bible|Leviticus|16|1|34}}, which describes the [[scapegoat]] as the bearer of [[sin]]s.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160305010641/https://www.lambdachi.org/blog/candc/a-look-into-the-background-of-the-fraternal-goat/ A Look into the Background of the Fraternal Goat] by Tom Earp (2012 June) ''Cross & Crescents'' (archived from March 5, 2016).</ref> Fraternities' relationships with goats have not always been benevolent, however, as there has been at least one case of cruelty toward a goat by a fraternity.<ref>[https://diverseeducation.com/article/10267/ WKU Fraternity Suspended for Hazing, Animal Cruelty Reinstated] (November 21, 2007) ''AP'' via ''Diverse: Issues In Higher Education''.</ref><ref>[https://www.roanoke.com/news/education/higher_education/radford/goat-related-fraternity-suspensions-lifted-at-ru/article_f619c815-3db1-543f-b366-cf66a6975ac1.html  Goat-related fraternity suspensions lifted at RU] by Robby Korth (Dec 22, 2016) ''The Roanoke Times''.</ref>

==See also==
*[[Proud Boys]] — a fraternity<ref>[https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/national/capitol-riots/private-telegram-messages-show-proud-boys-scrambling-after-capitol-riot-ethan-nordean-joseph-biggs-dominic-pezzola-enrique-tarrio/65-b08c1c31-5d34-4b9c-8e98-ab2bc982fc5c 'They are coming for us' | Private Telegram messages show Proud Boys scrambling after Capitol riot: An attorney for Proud Boy leader Ethan Nordean submitted dozens of private messages between members of the group in court this week.] by Jordan Fischer et al. (Published: 12:28 PM EDT June 16, 2021; Updated: 7:03 PM EDT June 16, 2021) ''WUSA9''. "I understand where we’re at in the frat." — Ethan Nordean, Proud Boys leader</ref> minus the [[Education|edumacation]]
*[[Rape culture]]
*[[Secret society]]
*[[Skull and Bones]]

==External links==
*[https://projects.chronicle.com/titleix/ Title IX: Tracking Sexual Assault Investigations]
*[https://www.knowyourix.org/ Know Your IX: Empowering Students to Stop Sexual Violence]
*[http://www.frmtltd.org/ FRMT Ltd.]
*[https://websites.omegafi.com/omegaws/fipg/ FIPG]
*[https://preventionnavigator.rainn.org/program/the-mens-program/ The Men's Program]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

[[Category:Crime]]
[[Category:Goats]]
[[Category:Homophobia]]
[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:Rape]]
[[Category:Rape culture]]
[[Category:Racism]]
[[Category:Sexism]]
[[Category:Machismo]]

Categories: Crime, Goats, Homophobia, Organizations, Rape, Rape culture, Racism, Sexism, Machismo