Anybody know the details: discriminatory homecoming parade float

[hoosier]

(I wonder if any of the old timers can remind us of any details about the discriminatory homecoming parade float which closed two chapters at CSU in 1998?)


List of CSU Greek chapters in violation of alcohol rules

September 9, 2005

Since 1998 at Colorado State University, six Greek chapters have been closed, one chapter was reorganized and one chapter lost its recognition as a student organization:

• 1998 — Alpha Chi Omega sorority was closed due in large part to its role in creating a discriminatory homecoming parade float.

• 1998 — The university withdrew recognition of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity due in large part to its role in creating a discriminatory homecoming parade float. The Pi Kappa national charter did not close the chapter.

• 1998 — Beta Theta Pi fraternity — was closed for repeated alcohol violations and neighborhood disturbances.

• 2000 — Sigma Nu fraternity was closed for hazing and repeated alcohol violations.

• 2000 — Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity was reorganized for hazing and repeated alcohol violations. The fraternity was reduced and reorganized as a group of 10 members and was deemed an alcohol-free fraternity.

• 2001 — Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity was closed for repeated alcohol violations and allegations of drug use and assaults.

• 2004 — Sigma Pi fraternity was closed due to several rule infractions, including alcohol-related violations.

• 2004 — Delta Sigma Phi fraternity was closed due to several rule infractions, including alcohol-related violations.

There have been no reported incidents of hazing at Colorado State since spring of 2000 when Sigma Nu was closed in part due to a hazing-related event.

[exlurker]

Not necessarily all the details, but at least the very basic story should be available through CNN:

http://www.cnn.com/US/9810/13/gay.mock.float/

At the time this was widely disseminated international news.
The Pi Kappa Alpha chapter was closed or suspended for a few years. Almost immediately after the story broke, the Alpha Chi Omega chapter members voted to return their charter. (I have read that the sorority members were essentially given a choice by their national officers: vote to return their charter ASAP, or their charter would be revoked by Alpha Chi Omega.)

Lots of news and views on the incident can be found with an ordinary Google web search on some combination of words like ---

colorado state parade float alpha kappa omega

-- or whatever combination of words might seem reasonable . . . scarecrow might be another word you could throw into the search mix.

[hoosier]

Thanks for the info and link.

Sounds like the Univ. only has one penalty for GLOs, and it's two words:

Good Bye

[exlurker]

Originally posted by hoosier
Thanks for the info and link.

Sounds like the Univ. only has one penalty for GLOs, and it's two words:

Good Bye

I'm not sure I'd agree with that. In the cases of the fraternity and sorority and the float, that national HQs of the GLOs acted before the university did.

In the more recent instances of alcohol policy violations, the university only withdrew recognition from one fraternity. There were two other distinct kinds of penalties for other fraternities and five sororities: one-year suspensions and one-year social probation. Although those penalties probably weren't welcomed by the chapters that received them, they're not the same as "Good Bye."

[DeltAlum]

Originally posted by hoosier
Thanks for the info and link.

Sounds like the Univ. only has one penalty for GLOs, and it's two words:

Good Bye

I don't necessarily agree with that. There have been a number of unfortunate situations within the Colorado State Greek community within the past several years which have put both the Greeks and the University in a bad light.

That's not the university's fault, is it?

Consider as well how the feeling is within the Colorado Legislature from which much of the school's funding comes -- and the terrible publicity things like the Spady situation and the homecoming float fiasco have caused locally.

Greek life has shot itself in the foot in many cases in Ft. Collins.