A few months ago, Bloomberg compiled a master list of every offense made by fraternities and sororities during the 2014-2015 school year. It didn’t look great for Greek Life. It was a news item, highlighting misdeeds while excluding any of the good work Greeks do. We could kind of write it off, since it’s not like it was an official government document or anything.
Except, now someone actually wants something like this to actually become an official government document. Representative Joshua Putnam, a Republican from Piedmont, South Carolina, has proposed a bill that would create “an online database listing arrests, investigations and violations linked to fraternities and sororities,” according to The Independent Mail.
Putnam made this proposal after meeting with the family of Tucker Hipps, who passed away after falling from a bridge while participating in an event with Sigma Phi Epsilon at Clemson. While no criminal charges have been filed in the case, Hipps’ parents have sued the fraternity, three of its members and Clemson University for wrongful death.
This legislation is meant to “improve safety for college students” by providing “every tool for students and parents to make wise decisions.” Additionally, “he said the measure would require incidents involving fraternities, sororities and other social organizations at the state’s public colleges and universities to be published online. The online database would include information about how each arrest, investigation and violation involving these organizations was resolved.”
I’m not necessarily opposed to this, but I’ve got two issues. First, let’s clarify “other social organizations.” Are we talking each and every single student group on campus, Mr. Putnam? Because we aren’t the only ones with issues. In fact, I’m pretty sure there’s been some members of sports teams arrested for various infractions in recent years for everything from stealing crab legs to beating the crap out of a girl at a bar. Secondly, is this database also going to include all of the good things about the included organizations? Because if the goal of your database is to provide a tool “for students and parents to make wise decisions,” I think you need to give them all of the information, not just the bad stuff.
[via The Independent Mail]
- Image via Shutterstock
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Jenna Crowley
Jenna used to be known as 2NOTBrokeGirls, but then one of the girls actually went broke, so she's struck out on her own. Jenna spends her free time saving the world, one sorority girl at a time (usually while wearing yoga pants), questioning why she decided to get a doctorate, and documenting her love of all things cheese related. You can ask her anything you want about football, using your boobs to get what you want, and pizza at @JennaLCrowley on Twitter or via email at JennaLCrowley@gmail.com.
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