Two years ago I would have strenuously disagreed with the "hazing is good" sentiment; now, however, I'm beginning to have second thoughts. As a brother in the Pi Kappa Alpha chapter at Princeton University, I'm thoroughly aware of the strict prohibitions set on hazing by most international Greek organizations. During our fall rush this past year, we chose to emphasize this policy with our prospective rushees and ended up with the sorriest bunch of pledges I've ever encountered. On my campus, at least, it seems as though the best male Greek prospects WANT to be hazed--they want those hardships precisely because enduring them becomes a badge of honor and a source for rueful and hilarious "Remember whens...". I'm certain that explanation of hazing policies to potential pledges will be the crucial issue in planning our chapter's strategy for this coming fall's rush; I'm not so certain of how we'll resolve it. My own experience has been that a rushee who wants blanket assurance that he will not be hazed or otherwise f***ed with is not truly committed to making ANY of the sacrifices necessary to complete a successful pledgeship. I wish that weren't the case at Princeton, but it is.
Comments or questions are welcome.
Andrew Martin, Princeton '02
{Artimis: Edited single word for content}
[This message has been edited by Artimis (edited August 06, 2001).]
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