EDITORIAL: Fraternities set precedent, shatter stereotypes

When a system is broken, it is illogical to keep moving forward. A blown gasket or a punctured tire needs fixing, yet the driver or machinist must first know that something is wrong; to function again, this is a necessity.

Universities, however, are such massive machines that to know that a bolt is missing or a process is wrong is incredibly difficult. The Interfraternity Council at the University of California, Berkeley took it upon itself to self-examine its functions.

Following two alleged sexual assaults at fraternity parties off campus, the Interfraternity Council suspended “all social events until we can reevaluate our risk management practices and care for those who have been affected,” according to a Facebook post.

The IFC expressed the pledge for fraternities to “eliminate sexual violence from our community and reaffirm our commitment to our members and students of Berkeley to provide a safe environment for all.”

A step in the direction of assuming responsibility for one’s actions is recognizing there is a problem, and the fraternities at UC Berkeley did just that. Change is instigated when individuals at the source, presumably fraternity brothers in this situation, wish to change. Similar to forcing an individual to go to rehab, changing habits is not something that can be required; it must be desired.

The statement of the UC Berkeley IFC shows that they are not only desiring to change the stereotypes of fraternities on their campus, but across the nation. Stereotypically, fraternities have a negative connotation of a singular interest in partying of all forms. Reputation and principles are perceived to always come second.

Yet, this stance admirably proves otherwise.

To take this one step further, it would be intriguing to see individual statements on behalf of the fraternities. Certainly not all were involved with the assaults, but to stand besides their “community,” as they repeatedly refer to themselves as Greek life on campus, is incredibly mature. Individually, they could have split off to continue partaking in social events. The solidarity is particularly impactful.

One of the drawbacks of the statement comes from the wording of the direct reference to the assaults. The post said, “While we have no reason to believe that these were committed by fraternity men on this campus, it is still disheartening and alarming that they have occurred on fraternity property.” Though it is important that fraternity brothers have pointed out that sexual assaults is “disheartening and alarming,” what makes them so sure that there is “no reason to believe that these were committed by fraternity men on this campus”? Despite the actual perpetrator of the offense, responsibility needs to be taken because both assaults took place on fraternity property.

In reference to the statements above, the post’s position could be interpreted as a strategic PR move. Certainly, to save face, fraternities could disseminate a blanket statement of sorts, absolving them of responsibility while still seeming emotionally affected. Unfortunately, the individuals most closely affected are the victims and this fact cannot be forgotten or undermined.

That being said, universities have a similar track record of poorly handling sexual assault. Though university involvement is necessary in this case, particularly if the victims filed a complaint with the administration, the outcome is iffy at best. Even at particularly prestigious universities, like Stanford and Cornell, the handling of sexual assault cases needs to be better examined. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, Stanford and Cornell universities both have five Title IX investigations. This makes a clear statement: if sexual assault is not handled correctly by the administration, then it will not be correctly handled by its students.

When a student-run fraternity handles a sexual assault case with more tact and responsibility than two of the top universities in our nation, then it is certainly time to reevaluate our priorities as a society.