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On Nov. 2 every fraternity president will vote on a resolution that will ban hard alcohol from chapter houses. This bill has the good intentions of trying to combat binge drinking. Supporters praise this legislation as a deterrent to alcohol-related incidents.
Binge drinking looms as a very large legal problem not only for the recently maligned Greek system, but also the university. However, this is not a wise or efficient way of going about dealing with this issue.
Let’s be honest: Barton’s and Kentucky Deluxe aren’t going away whether we ban them or not. By outlawing hard alcohol from chapter houses, we will only see it resurface in more unsafe places.
Although this resolution has been sketched out for months, the real precipitator for its unveiling was the recent situation with Phi Delta Theta. (I’m sorry to Phi Delta Theta for bringing this up again, but it is relevant to the argument.)
As some of the public knows, a member of Phi Delta was taken to the hospital with alcohol poisoning. Soon after, a story broke on K-State’s Web site of a possible hazing incident. The incident then somehow matriculated into USA Today. Obviously, this was a terrible stain on the Greek system – of which I am a member as a Sigma Nu – and the university. After this, the resolution was introduced.
Yet, Phi Delta Theta is a dry house and the incident took place away from the chapter house. In other words, I doubt a ban will have that much of an effect. Like this situation illustrates, students will find ways to get drunk.
Banning hard alcohol won’t hide it from underage students. Irresponsible drinkers will always drink irresponsibly. Neo-prohibition will only push these drinkers to sketchier places, leaving the leaders of these houses scrambling to try and police this activity.
The Interfraternity Council’s Event Responsibility Policy already bans hard alcohol at social events. Because this rule is monitored fairly well by the IFC, most houses follow it. On the other hand, this mandate will be very hard to regulate and will lead to houses flouting it. In turn, the IFC will lose credibility in their ability to control chapters. This will create direct pressure from the university to implement radical changes.
At Colorado University, houses were given an ultimatum by the university to acquiesce to certain guidelines. The houses balked and revoked any affiliation to the school. Hopefully, the K-State Greek system can avoid losing their self-autonomy and still be affiliated with the school, but this mandate will not help in that cause.
Please, don’t take this as a frat boy trying to cling to archaic traditions.
Yes, I realize a good portion of the opponents to this bill are those who only want to perpetuate the debilitating “Animal House” stereotype. In theory, the perfect Greek system would allow houses to govern themselves because all of their members drink responsibly. This utopia isn’t coming anytime soon. This resolution has good intentions, but the road to hell is also paved with good intentions. Continued hospital trips will cripple the Greek system, yet so will the inability to police itself.
Something needs to be done to prevent us from being in USA Today again, but I don’t think a ban is the answer.
I urge all fraternity presidents to vote against this resolution.
- Mitchell J. Widener is a sophomore in English. He is a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity. Please send comments to opinion@spub.ksu.edu.
