Understand Drinking & Hazing
Alcohol Awareness Month is an opportunity to raise awareness of alcohol abuse and encourage Tekes and friends to make healthy, safe choices. Held every April, it was founded by the NCADD (National Council on Alcoholism And Drug Dependence) since 1987 to increase public awareness and understanding aimed at reducing the stigma that too often prevents individuals and families from seeking help. In 2012, NCADD celebrates the 26th Anniversary of Alcohol Awareness Month with the theme, "Healthy Choices, Healthy Communities: Prevent Underage Drinking."
A common thought is 'that happens to other people,' but it’s not true. It doesn't matter if you have a 4.0 GPA or volunteer at community service events every month - it CAN happen to you. This is not intended to scare you into not drinking, but it is a pointed request to think if you choose to drink. Every choice has benefits and consequences. As Fraters, we need to hold each other and our guests to a higher standard.
According to NCADD research:
- Underage drinking is a leading contributor to death from injuries, which are the main cause of death for people under age 21. Annually, about 5,000 people under age 21 die from alcohol related injuries involving underage drinking. About 1,900 (38%) of the 5,000 deaths involve motor vehicle crashes, about 1,600 (32%) result from homicides, and about 300 (6%) result from suicides.
- Approximately 600,000 students are unintentionally injured while under the influence of alcohol.
- Approximately 700,000 students are assaulted by other students who have been drinking.
- About 100,000 students are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape.
- Young adults aged 18 to 22 enrolled full-time in college were more likely than their peers not enrolled full-time (i.e., part-time college students and persons not currently enrolled in college) to use alcohol in the past month, binge drink, or drink heavily. Past-month alcohol use was reported by 66.4% of full-time college students compared with 54.1% of persons aged 18 to 22 who were not enrolled full-time.
- Binge and heavy-use rates for college students were 45.5 and 19.0%, respectively, compared with 38.4 and 13.3%, respectively, for 18- to 22-year-olds not enrolled full time in college.
TKE should be setting an example for the Greek Community that our men are well-rounded individuals who are making a difference through our actions. A fraternity should be much more than a social drinking club. All you need is to look at our founders' vision for Tau Kappa Epsilon.
We believe that a fraternity should be a brotherhood in conduct as well as in name. "Faith without works is dead." Pledges of brotherhood not succeeded by observance in conduct are as "sounding brass and tinkling cymbal." By the tenor of our daily action we should evidence our devotion to the principles we have solemnly obligated ourselves to observe.
Go out today, make the entire TKE Nation proud, and remember that YOU are TKE. Everywhere you wear letters, people will be evaluating the entire Fraternity’s character - all based on your actions. Always remember that we seek to build Better Men for a Better World. We can’t do this without your support and leadership.
Hazing
Many individuals want hazing to stop. Some are friends or relatives of people being hazed, some are students who are being hazed themselves, and others are members of organizations that haze. They may even be hazers themselves, albeit reluctant ones. In order to play a role in preventing hazing, there are a few steps that individuals must go through (adapted from Berkowitz, A., 1994) to move from being bystanders to active change agents:
- Recognize the existence of hazing. Individuals may become aware that hazing is occurring through observations or reports from others. One barrier to recognizing hazing is a lack of understanding of the indications of hazing. For example, avoiding questions about high-risk situations or use of the term “hell week” are two instances where you need to ask what those involve.
- Interpret the practices as a problem. Even when people are aware that someone is being hazed, they may not view the activities as being problematic. They may consider the practices to be silly or stupid, but not recognize them as being harmful or illegal. If you see a problem you need to take action and challenge it.
- Believe that you have a responsibility to do something. Even if individuals recognize that hazing is occurring and they interpret the behavior as a problem, they will not do anything about it if they do not believe that they have a responsibility to do so. But in a TKE chapter, the responsibility to challenge harm to others is a shared one. It is therefore important for individuals to recognize the potential role they have in stopping hazing.
- Know what to do. Some individuals are aware of hazing and feel a responsibility to do something about it, but they do not know what should be done. Whether there is a need to encourage someone to leave a group, make an anonymous report, or challenge a group to change its practices, it is important for bystanders to have some understanding of what should be done in order to make a difference.
Take action. Since some Fraters want change but don't know what to do in place of hazing, learn more about Hazing Prevention or Bystander Behavior by ordering your free copy of Response Ability from TKE today.
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