The Sigma Delta Constitution is clear, "Sigma Delta seeks to provide a social space where all women feel comfortable, and no woman will feel threatened by her gender. Sigma Delta seeks to foster gender interaction and communication at Dartmouth in a social atmosphere of gender issues awareness."
Smashing a window when drunk seems the perfect post-hangover anecdote: a great "Did you hear what happened last night?" tale starring you. But when it actually happened at Sigma Delta sorority on Thursday, July 4th, the circumstances surrounding the incident forced us to examine with concern what we had originally viewed as merely yet another example of alcohol-steeped stupidity. Two male students entered Sigma Delta at 3:00 a.m. and were soon asked to leave by two sisters who were going to bed. When asking, reasoning, and cajoling proved ineffective, the two sisters tricked the men into leaving. As soon as the men were outside, the women -- intimidated and frightened by the aggressiveness of the drunk males -- ran upstairs, and locked all doors and windows. Soon after, one of the males kicked through a two-paned storm window.
This is not meant to be a feminist tirade, an Us vs. Them, Man vs. Woman, Fraternity vs. Sorority rant. Nor is it a personal attack on the two men involved in the incident. It is, instead, a statement of our exasperation at a series of events that have stymied our efforts to fulfill our social purpose. In the winter, we began a policy of hiring bouncers at open parties because of the sexual, physical and verbal abuse that sisters had repeatedly encountered.
In the spring, our house was broken into, entered illegally dozens of times, resulting in both theft and vandalism. This latest event convinced us that, in effect, sisters were not safe in their own home. We are not isolationists. We do not want to provide social space for women merely in constitutional rhetoric. But how can we provide a safe social atmosphere if we feel threatened in our house?
Our outrage at the incidents has been branded by many as histrionic over-reaction, as twisting typical, Dartmouth-bred drunken revelry into a feminist attack on fraternities or males in general. Speaking to many male friends, we've found an all-too-troubling reaction: many see it as an excusable, permissible betise -- "Hey, he was drunk. He just didn't know what he was doing." Exactly.
The fact that he didn't know what he was doing is just what scares us. If the break-in had been at a fraternity, it could be viewed in a different light. It would certainly still be a criminal act, but it doesn't carry the same undertones that a break-in at a sorority does. Of the 18 women who live in Sigma Delta, more than one has been sexually assaulted in the last year -- at Dartmouth. We are not insinuating at all that the man who broke our window had any kind of malicious intentions. No, but his actions -- seen as a culmination of events that have taken place all year -- reminds us unwillingly again and again of our vulnerability on this campus.
We joined this sorority in part because of its dedication to not only the women members of the house, but all women on this campus. And we feel like the disrespect with which both our persons and our space has been treated is indicative of larger problems we see all around us. We just today discovered that yet another window here was broken, or punched out, Saturday night at a party. We can offer no immediate solutions other than to keep on doing what we do: to provide a safe social atmosphere for all women and men on this campus.
We can no longer laugh, roll our eyes, and explain that "Well, he was drunk." Responsibility needs to be taken, and respect needs to be shown to all houses on this campus, not only between fraternity-sorority relationships but fraternity-fraternity ones as well. We are calling attention to what happened at our house this last week not as a means to point fingers and chase after people, but as a way for people to start talking about the larger issues surrounding the incident -- responsibility and respect for yourself and others when alcohol is present. This is the what needs to start being addressed and we hope others will participate in the discussion.
