Oregon: Task Force recommends stopping expansion

[WCsweet<3]

http://www.kval.com/news/local/UO-Se...280130352.html

The University of Oregon Senate Task Force addressing sexual violence and survivor support on campus held a meeting Wednesday to give it's final set of recommendations to university officials... They also recommended the U of O immediately suspend plans to expand fraternity and sorority life. Members on the task force said the Greek system - along with athletics - are where the university sees a lot of issues with sexual violence.

U of Oregon currently has Sigma Kappa colonizing in Fall 2015 and Delta Zeta in Fall 2017.

[wsucalsigmakapp]

I don't think stopping sorority expansion is going to change or solve the issue. And maybe I am biased, but how do they think that stopping sorority expansion is going to change sexual violence?

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by wsucalsigmakapp

I don't think stopping sorority expansion is going to change or solve the issue. And maybe I am biased, but how do they think that stopping sorority expansion is going to change sexual violence?

Sororities do many things that contribute to rape culture, such as shaming women about their own sexuality. How many times have we seen things here about not sleeping around if you intend to participate in deferred recruitment?

[SoCalGirl]

Sororities also do things like teach members to not get sloppy drunk and look out for each other's safety. I'm also biased but if the SK recolonization gets stopped I'm not going to be happy at all.

[AZTheta]

Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby

Sororities do many things that contribute to rape culture, such as shaming women about their own sexuality. How many times have we seen things here about not sleeping around if you intend to participate in deferred recruitment?

I'm sorry, I don't quite see how you came up with this.

How did you equate being raped with sexuality and being shamed about one's sexuality?

I am sincere; I can't follow your thinking or your logic. Maybe you have a different example?

[Kevin]

If schools, especially public ones won't let us expand, guess what we're going to do? We're going to build or buy a house campus adjacent, renovate it, put our letters up and recruit members from their university. We can either work with these schools as partners or play entirely by our own rules. They cannot stop us from expanding.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Originally Posted by AZTheta

I'm sorry, I don't quite see how you came up with this.

How did you equate being raped with sexuality and being shamed about one's sexuality?

I am sincere; I can't follow your thinking or your logic. Maybe you have a different example?

Here's are some links that explain the connection:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sabrin...b_3279668.html

http://windsorindependent.com/slut-s...-todays-world/

To be clear, though, rapists are responsible for rape. Not women, not sororities, not fraternities, not college campuses, but rapists. I'm just saying that, if we are going to look at the Greek system as a place where too many rapes happen, and we want to examine some of the societal factors that play into it, I don't think we can say "fraternities are the problem, sororities are totally cool." It's fair to spend some time looking at the dynamics of both.

[KDCat]

Originally Posted by Kevin

If schools, especially public ones won't let us expand, guess what we're going to do? We're going to build or buy a house campus adjacent, renovate it, put our letters up and recruit members from their university. We can either work with these schools as partners or play entirely by our own rules. They cannot stop us from expanding.

The NPC doesn't really work that way. University approval is a required part of the expansion process.

[Kevin]

With college campuses becoming more liberal and trying to force inclusion on groups which want to be exclusive, at some point, that might change with both NIC and NPC. Of course with NIC, YMMV.

[DubaiSis]

I actually think there is some validity to encouraging expansion of sororities to minimize this problem. Why? I'm thinking that with a smaller chapter comes more accountability among members. If Suzie disappears at a fraternity party among 50 sorority sisters she might be missed. If she is among 150 that likelihood decreases.

The reason my non-Greek (and non-college educated) mother wanted my sisters and me to join sororities was so that we would have someone to notice if we went missing. That is always the example she used. I know the huge chapters do a really good job of developing bonds within the chapter but I still think there is a real risk of "losing" sisters every now and again.

The problem should be moot, but the reality is we have to be there for each other to prevent this crap. Denying young women these bonds could potentially eliminate a safety net.

[Griffins&Quills]

I really don't understand how stopping expansion will help the problem. I think that maybe instead members should be educated about these issues, fraternities and sororities alike. Expansion itself doesn't really have anything to do with the issue of sexual violence.... unless you're going to the place that more sororities = more girls and more opportunity for males who "just can't control themselves" in which case, I can't even.

[Low D Flat]

I'm thinking that with a smaller chapter comes more accountability among members.

That's what I was thinking, too. Giant chapters cannot be safer than small ones. Maybe the school thinks that if the chapters get too big, interest in Greek life will decrease -- the logic of "that place is so crowded, no one goes there anymore"?

[DubaiSis]

No, they're just not thinking. If you take girls out of the picture, guess what happens? The gender of the rape victim changes. The solution is education and vigilance. And getting rid of whatever is in the water that makes guys think it is ok to assault women, or more correctly, people seen as weaker.

[FSUZeta]

Within large chapters are smaller groups of members who hang out together. They look out for each other.

[AGDee]

By implying that through having fewer sororities, fewer women would be raped, they are simply perpetuating rape culture. It is the fault of the women - something they are doing- not the fault of the rapists.

Are there statistics that sorority women are raped more frequently? On this campus? On any campus?