Paddles Considered Hazing??
 

Hey everyone, someone told me recently that they aren't allowed to make paddles for their big's because its considered hazing. Does anyone else know about this, or follow this?
We usually make them for our big sis's when we get innitiated and they give you your first stiched on's.. kinda like a trade off.. ok thats all I was just curious...
:D

I believe here at Miami it is considered hazing if the pledges (oops, I mean New Members) have paddles. We would get paddles and have all the actives sign them after we interviewed them. It's not like we beat each other with them, give me a break. I see no problem with having paddles, but I guess Greek Affairs does.

It is tradition for in my chapter for the little sisters to make thier big sis their paddle and give it to them during Big Sis Appreciation week (after initiation). But it can't be something the big sis requires her little to make....because that would be considered hazing. :rolleyes: Just a loophole in the rules, I guess. :)

paddles
 

Yeah, it supposed to be considered hazing, but the manner in which my chapter does it is not. I actually enjoyed making a paddle for my big. It was more like a plaque. I put a pic of us together on it and painted it. It was really fun to do, and it was great to see the look on my bigs face when I gave it to her. She was thrilled. It's a sense of pride if your little makes one for you. As bigs, we in turn like to make them for our littles. It sort of means you have a really tight family if you have them hanging on your wall. They aren't required, but we enjoy doing something nice for our bigs since they bought us so much stuff. In NO WAY are they EVER used for beating or anything. If used in that manner, yes, they are hazing, and no, I do not agree with that.

My collegiate chapter can't make "paddles". Even during Recruitment, aka Rush, they had to put bows on them to make them look less "paddle-ish". They could make placques.

I know that many people make paddles for the sole purpose of hanging it on their wall, but we are forbidden from even making them! Their reasoning is that paddles carry negative images of hazing--so instead of trying to convince everyone that paddles are purely decoration, they decided to do away with them completely. I don't see a problem with that--it only means you start new traditions.

From what I heard from our LA, she said the tradition of making paddles ended in the early 1990s. In fact, it ended with her pledge class in 1992. After that, no one could make paddles without raising hell with IHQ.

During Intiation week we have Fireside, and that's where we have pass up/down gifts and we have Sister Mom/Daughter poem exchange. It's a great tradition we have and it's special for all of us. So, even if we don't have paddles to give and receive, the occasion's still memorable.

We make paddles for our big sisters and give them to them on the night we get initiated. It is a tradition that we have had since our founding. Also, each new member class makes a paddle to hang in the chapter room. None of these were ever used to harm someone. And we've never been told about it being hazing, unless it's used to hit someone.

honest to God, this country lost thousands of its citizens in a senseless attack and we are worrying about making a frigging wooden paddle to hang on the wall or a beer mug? Sorry to go off, I just get sick of these things that mean nothing being blown out of proportion. The more you say "oooh, paddles are hazing" the more people will think of using them for that. Just like the anti-huffing campaigns - I bet there's tons of 8th graders out there who never thought about it until everyone told them not to do it.

I mean hell, you're not allowed to MAKE anyone do anything because that's hazing. Soon rush and required GPA's will be on the list, and we can all just pay our money and get our letters.

But anyhoo...in answer to paddles, we gave them to our bigs at initiation and our bigs gave us our 1st crest sweatshirt. And no we don't hit each other with them, not after we spent all that time making the things.

We still make paddles, it depends on your "family" in the house. Some of the girls who don't like the connotation of paddles have started a new tradition. They get a wooden cut out of our letters or mascot and they modge podge pictures and magazine clippings. They are more personal and nobody would even look at them and think of hazing. Most of them get a wooden coat of arms at the greek store and put it right in the middle. They are actually really cute and have sentimental value, not that paddles don't.

In my local sorority, we did gifts for our big/little sisters. I decorated a paddle for my big; she decorated a wooden cut-out figure for me, with our names and letters. (I still have it - with an AEPhi ribbon on it :) ) My pledge sisters and I also made up a paddle for our pledge mom.

AEPhi nationally doesn't allow "paddles" per se, but does encourage gifts. I think I bought letters and a couple of small gifts for my little. I also made up a cross stitch of the AEPhi letters and a lily of the valley for my big, and another for myself. I meant to make one for my little, too, but never got around to it... :(

In my book, a paddle is just something you can decorate and give as a gift - provided it's not actually used for paddling. It's the act that's hazing - not the object.

I think the paddle thing is so stupid!!!! Another example of the idiocy of a few ruining something for the whole group. It was always a tradition for the big sisses to make paddles for their littles when they were initiated. I was so excited to get my paddle.....and when I was initiated I got my gifts from my big, including my beautiful, hand-decorated.....SLED! This was back in 1991 when they were just coming out with the idea that paddles were hazing....unfortunately I had one of those bigs who went by the rules. Most of the other girls went ahead and made paddles for their littles, but mine had gone to a craft store and found what she thought was the closest safe thing....a little wooden sled that she pained pink and put all the typical paddle things on. You couldn't even hang it because it was so big and because of its shape would not lie flush to the wall. She tried, but boy was I disappointed. Rest assured that both of my littles got their paddles!!!!!!

As the AGD's have said, its against our Internationals to have paddle, and I can see where they are coming from, but I do think its a little ridiculous somewhat. Our chapter still has them in the house, but along with the Beer Mugs/Trophies, they are all down. Its kind cool to look at them though. However, I dont think it would be a problem if we got them as gifts from say like a parent, just as long as they probably arent displayed in the house.

PADDLES
 

I AM A TKE ALUM. IF YOU LOOK CAREFULLY AT THESE HAZING RULES, MOST OF THEM ARE IN VIOLATION OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT.

WHAT TO DO: GET IN TOUCH WITH THE ALUMNI. THEY TRIED MAKING SOME "REFORMS" AT MY SCHOOL. I ORGANIZED THE ALUMS WHO PUT IT IN NO UNCERTAIN TERMS THAT IF THEY WENT THROUGH WITH THESE "REFORMS" THAT THEY WOULD KISS THE DONATIONS GOOD-BYE. I DONATE A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT MONEY TO MY SCHOOL. I HAD A FACE TO FACE MEETING WITH THE VP OF ALUMNI GIVING AND I HAVE ASSURANCES THAT THESE RULES WILL NOT BE ENFORCED.

BUT WHAT TO DO IF YOU DON'T HAVE A ENLIGHTENED SCHOOL. I RECOMMEND THAT EVERY CHAPTER HAVE A GOOD LAWYER ON RETAINER. OUR CHAPTER PAYS FOR IT AND IT IS WORTH IT. ALSO, REMEMBER YOUR RIGHTS UNDER THE CONSTITUTION. YOU DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT THE SCHOOL OR POLICE ASK.

SO, I SAY...MAKE YOUR PADDLES. IF THE SCHOOL OBJECTS, POLITELY TELL THEM THAT THEY ARE INFRINGING ON YOUR 1ST AMENDMENT RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION. IF THEY INSIST, PUT YOUR LAWYER TO WORK.

TEKE IS STRONG.

but you don't have to yell...:p
mmcat

I made a paddle for my big brother. He made one for me too. Plus he gave me his first set of letters. Wow. That reads funny. The first set of letters he got, the orginal colony letters that were the first ones ever, he passed down to me. I'm wearing our history. Pretty cool huh?

my school doesnt have an "anti-paddle" law on the books, but there's really only one place in the area where you can buy paddles.

the paddles are balanced wrong, the handles are too short and too wide, and it's routered so it's as hard to hold by the handle as possible (it actually cut into my hand when i was trying to hold it). in short, it's deliberately designed to not be used and to only hang up on a wall.

perhaps the greek paraphenialia stores could try stocking alternatives to paddles for each fraternity. i know they make 5 pointed crowns for ZTA ladies at my local store, perhaps they could make TKE triangles, or Oxes for theta chi or something like that, and see how demand goes.

I guess I have heard it all now. There are actually some orgs. that will not allow you to decorate paddles because they view it as a symbol of hazing. Unbelieveable. I learn something new everyday from GC.

There is a particular fraternity on my campus who got in trouble for paddling their pledges. They always carried their paddles around campus.
I think it's pretty sick.

In my chapter, since paddles can be considered "hazing", the little sister's make them for their bigs, and give them to them at their senior brunch(last chi omega function as an active)..I got mine in may..it's huge..practically an oar! :)

Actually, many of the online greek stores do carry plaque-style cutouts in fraternity's/sorority's symbol/mascot shapes. I've seen owls for XO, arrows & angels for PiPhi, daggers for KD, diamonds for ADPi, lyres for AXO ect.....

Try somethinggreek.com (?) They even have our (DZ) Lamp & Turtle!

Since there is no LXA on this thread yet, I step to the fore!

OTW is right on the mark, our International, NO PADDLES made for Big Brothers as it is a sign of hazing and we were one of the first to have anti hazing! It also does not let the Chapter make a Large Padle with the Associate Member Class on it as that showed a sign of Hazing! Moronic as it seems, it is!:mad:

These paddles are almost as tall as I am and hang on the walls of the chapter house! Many Alums who come back show their kids their paddle on the wall!

it may be against International regulations, but i told some of the new classes that if they decided to make a paddle do it! We are not making them do it, it is on their own volition. True it shows what hazing was as paddling someones as but it is harde to with a 5 ft paddle which is decorated and hanging on a wall!

While we are not specifically disallowed to make paddles for our houses or individual members, we are not allowed to CARRY the paddles around with us as they could be classified as weapons with the "intent to haze." So, in that case, I can see where legislators get off in preventing people from carrying around paddles all day and on campus -- in a way, it encourages members to paddle each other with a paddle that's always there. Since most people argue that it's only for show and/or signing proof of interviewing, it's missing the point that it's still a potential use of hazing ON CAMPUS.

That said, I won't support a measure that prevents our chapter from making paddles at all -- it's simply another design for a plaque that we hang up on the walls of our house.

-MK

We make "paddles" for our bigs and littles in my chapter, but they aren't necessarily the wooden paddle that I'm guessing most other chapters make. Within our house, we get creative and occasionally go overboard. I don't know if it was a hazing issue at some point that started this, but we can make anything into a paddle, it just has to say things like "AXO, big sis, lil sis" and the names and so on...some people do the wooden paddles, but I've seen stuff like bulletin/dry erase boards, pillows, quilts, cross stitch samplers, all kinds of painted wooden things, picture frames, photo albums, and so on. I even know of someone who's making one out of metal, but not engraved, it's going to be shaped and formed into letters and stuff (but that's what I get for going to an engineering school ;) ). I just got a little (they're actually doing their big sis search tonight, yay!!), and I got a fleece throw and decorated one of the corners for her paddle. My big and I have a contest going on to out-paddle each other, basically, to see who can be the most creative, and we'll probably end up with 50 paddles some day, but that's fine with me. :D

I think it's awesome to give something to your big or your little, no matter what it is, and I agree with whoever said that it's the action that makes it hazing, not the object. Anyhow, just my two cents. :cool:

Hey AXO Liz, at least you guys can still HAVE a big/little search!!!!! When I was a senior we had to stop doing it because.......you guessed it.....it was considered HAZING!!!!!!

Just a side note to TEKE IS STRONG, the policies we're talking about did not come from the school, they came from the national HQ of the sorority.

In most cases it isn't the school banning the paddles, but the organizations themselves trying to distance themselves from a past connotation of hazing.

That's ridiculous!! For me, that was one of the most fun parts of my new member period! I hate hazing and all, but these rules are getting insane. We can't require anything of our new members, all we can do is "strongly encourage" it. We had nationals watch us the one year during the new member period, and the new member mom really couldn't do anything...and the girls in that pledge class thought it sucked. They were disappointed on all the stuff they missed out on because nationals claimed it was "hazing."

Whoever said that "paddling" (i.e. the action) not the paddle itself is hazing: I applaud you!
I agree with no hazing, no exceptions. But I don't think that an object can be and action, last I checked. I understand that some nationals want to get away from some of the images that *some* people have associated with Greeks. But please, at least suggest a reasonable alternative, rather than just doing away with a longstanding (for some) tradition of sisterhood....

Hmm, oars huh?

I have two old paddles from my outrigger canoeing days... I wonder if decorating them would get my daughter in trouble.. :confused:

Sandy, I highly doubt they would :)

Our national field consultant was here and said our nationals dicourage paddles, and I was crushed. I still got one from my lil and I couldn't be happier, its the cutest thing ever, with letter, a picture of us crest, etc. Its no hazing, thats just rediculous, it hangs on my wall and its not going anywhere cause its a little big and way to cute.
PS we couldn't do a hunt either because of course its hazing, but another chapter at our school did, but we also couldn't have two different colored bid day shirts and this year everyone else did, go figure...

My pledgeclass made the paddle for the pledgeclass before us, our big bros give us T-shirts and we give them sweatshirts... paddles hazing... right... thier just decorations....

hazing loopholes
 

I know this is an old thread, but I just thought it was interesting that some houses ban paddles completely b/c they're thought of as representing hazing. My house has an official rule of making the paddles totally unpaddle-looking...they'd be wood cut in different shapes (like animals or flowers or anything you can imagine...you can even bring in a picture and they'll custom cut it for you!) and painted cutely and then have the wooden letters and big sis lil sis stuff. But you can still get away with traditional paddles, if that's what you want. I intend to have a totally traditional paddle-looking thing, with my letters as the handle maybe, and an angel cutout and maybe a teeny bell hanging from the cutout (like you know from "It's a Wonderful Life," where "everytime a bell rings, there's an angel getting its wings"). Ha ha, I feel a little sorry for my future little sister, but I will gladly help her make it! (Hey, I'm gonna have this thing for the rest of my life--surprise nothing. Like I don't know what a paddle looks like.) Some of my pledge sisters' bigs even made them detailed blueprints! With the hundreds of dollars you spend on your little, they can spend a little time on your paddle...:D

We have always made paddles, and since it it widely known that they are only for wall decoration, there is no problem with that.

Our chapter doesn't necessarily ban making paddles, but when we're supposed to make them for our bigs during I-week, they call it a "wood good." That way, it doesn't sound like hazing, and if a little doesn't want to make a paddle, they don't have to (though most of them do anyway). People have also made wooden frames and boxes and stuff. It's pretty cool, but everyone still wants a paddle.

And to go with what dzsaigirl said, they're mainly for wall decoration, so there's not problem.

~Holly

you guys spend hundreds of dollars on your little???
our HQ has a $75 cap on big sister gifts.....
my chapter still gives paddles to their bigs and one that we hang in the chapter room. It is important to note that HQ does not allow photos of them on our websites. We usually write a message to our big sister on the back of them! The New Member class paddles slowly make their way through the chapter room and then they are taken down, I'm kind of sad...mine is almost off of the wall!

Check here for the hazing laws in your state. In most states paddling is considered hazing, which is illegal.

http://www.stophazing.org/laws.html

Instead of paddles Tri Sigma has sailboats or triangles. Very cute and only for decorative purposes. And I came from the Pledge era.

My chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta also has paddle making traditions. Every sorority chapter on my campus makes them. They are not required, though, it is just done at your own leisure (along with shirts too!).
OH, the Phi Mu chapter at our school has an entire room with paddles in it called the Paddle Room. And we have ours in our chapter house in our rooms even during recruitment. The LC's don't like them, but they are a tradition and when we explain to them that we would be the only chapter without them they lay off. That does not mean they like them though.
Sarah

This is the perfect example of politicall BS! Our Associate Classes made Large Paddles that held the names of Their Officers and Class and was Hung in a place of honor in the house!

Since it shows a FORM OF HAZING, it is a NO NO !!!!!!!!

How in the hell do you beat a guys butt with a 5 foot paddle?

I do not agree but I am the biggest Peed on In the International!

I fight them when I feel something is wrong!

Trust me they know who I am!;)