Fraternity Pledge: Hazing!

Based on Merriam-Webster Dictionary, hazing is generally defined as, “an initiation process involving harassment”. Hazing is the practice of initiating pledges into fraternity membership by having them perform difficult, humiliating, or dangerous tasks. It is usually done as a fraternity/sorority pledge rituals in many universities. Fraternities and sororities are organized groups of people that encourage esprit de corps, fellowship, and common loyalty. These organizations were intended to develop a sense of community and belongingness among the group. But before you can enter in these organizations, there are several rituals or fraternity pledge that you must undergo. Example, drinking bottles of liquor, not allowing a group of members or individuals to sleep or eat, changing someone’s appearance, streaking, fighting, and other humiliating things that you’ll do are all part of their fraternity pledges.

          Aspiring members are expected to submit themselves to these rituals and physical abuse such as paddling in order to prove their loyalty and determination to the fraternity or sorority that they wish to join. Many people took the risks even if it costs their dignity. Some may even took the serious risks on the initiation process even if it means that they will blow your back thigh 150 times with the wood paddle. 

But, why do people like to join fraternities/sororities knowing that they’re already risking their own life? It maybe because everybody knows that being a part of a fraternity means to have an instant group of friends, you’ll be accepted on the campus, you’ll have a brotherhood/sisterhood that you could depend on, and these promising advantages is very desirable for students who do not have any social groups. Nowadays, some students tend to seek belongingness and acceptance. That’s why they chose to undergo these inhumane treatments. But, would you exchange your and dignity just to have an acceptance? Knowing that dignity is a precious thing of a person. Once it is taken away from a person, it might lose his/her self-respect. Then, would you choose to be paddled and humiliate yourself just to have instant friends? For me, I’d rather choose being a loner than being paddled by a wood or humiliate myself in the public. I might have many friends and a sisterhood to rely on but I couldn’t imagine myself taking an oath and humiliate myself.

           

Resulting of many deaths and physical injuries caused by hazing. The government had implemented the Republic Act No. 8094, known as the “Anti-Hazing Law”. It is said that, hazing is punishable by reclusion perpetua (life imprisonment) if the person subjected to any ritual dies, raped, etc.

The universities should be the one to take responsibility to apply rules and regulations governing their fraternities and sororities. They should take charge to penalized the fraternities and sororities who commits or engages in any form of physical initiation or hazing. For be able to these organizations to avoid violence. And to be able to achieve and experience the real meaning of the brotherhood and sisterhood.