Hanover Police Chief Nicholas Giaccone has made clear that Dartmouth is no longer immune from state laws. Yet, while fraternities and sororities scramble to respond to Hanover Police's charges of underage drinking, neither the Greek system nor the College administration seem to be doing anything to address the most visible and widespread criminal act that occurs on campus hazing.
New Hampshire state law defines hazing as "Any action taken involving prospective or new members of a group which would be perceived by a reasonable person as likely to produce mental or physical discomfort, harm, stress, embarrassment, harassment, or ridicule." Examples include: "[forced] consumption of alcohol," "creation of excessive fatigue," "wearing of apparel likely to subject the wearer to embarrassment or ridicule" and "engaging in public stunts or buffoonery." To be clear, Dartmouth Undergraduate Judicial Affairs adds, "The definition of hazing applies whether or not the participants consent to such activity or perceive the behavior as voluntary.'"
Nearly every major social organization on this campus requires its new members to engage in at least one of these illegal activities. Some of this occurs in plain daylight, for students, faculty and administration to see: Chi Gam and Alpha Chi pledges don accessories with their house's Greek letters in large font, while Psi U pledges sport work boots, Wrangler jeans and gray sweatshirts throughout their pledge term (students have said that pledges are told they'll "never have to wear a working man's clothes again").
Perhaps Giaccone isn't about to prosecute houses for awkward (or classist) "pledge uniforms." Regardless, the antics signal the prevalence and widespread acceptance of institutionalized hazing, which may lead H-Po to investigate the more nefarious activities widely reported to occur on campus. We'd be foolish to think Giaccone's team couldn't easily prosecute Greek houses and other organizations for practices like forced binge drinking and physical humiliation. Indeed, if Giaccone really does have a vendetta against the Greek system as many students believe then exposing rampant hazing would be another strategy for taking the system down.
Those involved in hazing, and their respective organizations, aren't the only ones liable for the issue. According to Judicial Affairs, "the College is obliged to report hazing to law enforcement officials and to take reasonable measures to prevent hazing. Dartmouth students and employees are required to notify appropriate College officials of any perceived instance of hazing." What "reasonable measures" has College President Jim Yong Kim taken to prevent hazing? When was the last time students who observe (or participate in) these occurrences spoke with their deans about the issue? Almost all of us are implicated in this, and ignorance especially that of the College President is no excuse in court.
Given the degree of psychological violence involved in some of the more extreme forms of hazing, I imagine that ethical arguments are unconvincing to many who support the practice. Humans have a tendency to identify with their abusers (ever heard of Stockholm syndrome?), making it incredibly difficult to persuade hazed students that they were mistreated. As Dartmouth students, we've been trained from admissions to corporate recruiting to believe that acceptance in an organization requires competition and struggle; to many, hazing seems like a natural requirement for social success. Why else were students so outraged at the attempt to make the Homecoming bonfire a little friendlier for first-years? For many students, the idea of not being able to subject subsequent pledges to the same mistreatment they experienced themselves is downright threatening.
Therefore, while I've railed on the Greek system in a number of previous columns, this time, I'm making my argument on primarily legal grounds. In this era of increased policing in Hanover, fraternities, sororities and countless other organizations have made themselves an easy target for criminal prosecution, and Kim has already proven that he's unable to protect anybody from the law. Nevertheless, it's worth considering why few openly challenge hazing in the first place. The same practices that constitute hazing peer pressure and obedience to authority are what make it so difficult to eradicate. We can wait for the police to take care of our intransigence, or we can wake up and stop the cycle of hazing ourselves.
