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This was posted in the paper today...
Letter to the Editor
The benefits of Greeks
If the DI's negative journalism about the Greek system has made me frustrated in the past, then the recent story about the alleged hazing made me ill.
This is a story about one student who has come forth with allegations more than a year after the incidents supposedly took place.
Despite the fact that this is an isolated occurrence reported by an unnamed source with suspicious motives, the DI chose to run a gigantic, three-quarter page photo of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity house with an accompanying story filled with quotes from Dean Phillip Jones, a man who seems to positively vibrate with excitement every time he gets to take a crack at the Greeks.
I feel the DI and Jones would like to villainize the Greek system, but they must keep perspective. On a basic level, fraternities and sororities are social clubs. On a more complex level, though, the Greek system is filled with men and women who take their brotherhood and sisterhood very seriously.
For years, I have been part of a group of women who offer each other unwavering support, whether someone failed a test, broke up with a boyfriend, or lost a parent. I've seen the women of my house cry with joy when a sister got engaged, dance until dawn with cancer-stricken children, and proudly sing "We Are Family" at the top of their lungs. Every house on this campus can relay similar stories.
The Greek system isn't perfect, but we don't deserve the sensationalism and villianization that is thrown at us. At the core, we are simply UI students who slave over finals, pay U-Bills, and cheer on the Hawkeyes, just like everybody else. Let us operate in peace.
Libby Waterbury
UI senior, Alpha Chi Omega alum
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