WKU Swim Team Under Fire For Hazing

BlutarskyTFM11 years ago

I’ve seen a lot of hazing allegations in my day, but this is a first for me. The swim team at Western Kentucky University is in trouble for hazing after accusations from a former member of the team.

Freshman Collin Craig, an accomplished athlete, came to WKU as a competitive swimmer. Talk all the shit you want, but that’s not easy. Those guys bust their balls getting in shape for what is a very demanding sport. WKU is, apparently, a pretty decent school when it comes to swimming and it even has a few titles to its name, so one can assume the team is pretty selective.

Craig made the team, but he’s no longer a member. In fact, he’s no longer enrolled at Western Kentucky at all. Craig quit the team and left the school. Why? Because, according to him, he was hazed and abused by other members of the swim team.

From WBKO:

According to police, 18 year old freshman and former WKU swimmer Collin Craig sent them an email one week ago. In the letter, he accuses members of the team of assaulting and forcing him to drink alcohol on several occasions.

Alcohol, physical abuse, and swimming certainly don’t mix, so this is pretty serious. Whether these allegations are true or not remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: accusations of hazing are not unique to Greek organizations alone.

In fact, in my opinion, non-Greek organizations often get away with more hazing than those with Greek letters. Why? Stereotyping.

Think about it.

The masses assume that fraternities and sororities haze like crazy. Television shows and movies make people think that. As a result, any time a chapter is accused of hazing, it seems as if the members are guilty until proven innocent. Because of the assumption that fraternities and sororities haze their members, they are watched closely by IFC, Panhel, and other organizations. Non-Greek organizations, on the other hand, often have much less oversight, and therefore, they frequently get away with more.

I can name numerous times when either my chapter or other chapters were accused of hazing when the alleged hazing simply never happened. I’m sure you can, too. Rumors spread and people make stuff up. Whatever happens, the school always takes it seriously because a fraternity is involved. Do non-Greek organizations receive the same level of scrutiny? I don’t think so.

Whether schools turn a blind eye toward non-Greek hazing or they just aren’t aware of it, I don’t know. All I know is that hazing happens everywhere. Craig’s allegations against the WKU swim team are a prime example of that. I’d be willing to bet that hazing occurs as much or even more in non-Greek organizations than it does in fraternities and sororities. They just don’t get busted for it.

Craig came forward and tipped off the authorities, so we can be sure that they’re aware of the situation. Only time will tell if their response to it shows an anti-Greek bias or not..

[via WBKO]