Earlier this year, Democratic representative Lucy McBath rejoiced with her colleagues when the Stop Campus Hazing Act, a bill she wrote, was passed by the house. However, these lawmakers are in for a rude awakening if they think laws like this will be able to end the hazing epidemic that has plagued America's institutions for more than a century. Statistics show that since 2000, more than 100 hazing related deaths have occurred on college campuses. Each incident usually comes with the same outcomes- apologies, charges, and the calls for change. But public outcry and passing laws is not going to change anything. Hazing will continue to haunt our academic institutions and persist in our modern society because of impunity, tradition, and power dynamics.
According to the eBook Making the Team, the amount of reported hazing incidents has grown dramatically in the last two decades. The increase in reports has led to officials prosecuting more and more students, coaches, and sometimes even administrators. Universities have also responded with harsh punishments like fines, suspensions, and firings for teams and Greek organizations involved. Along with more widespread media coverage, hazing is getting more negative attention and condemnation than ever, and one would think that this spotlight would have a positive effect, leading to less hazing. But the truth is, it hasn't done anything to slow the culture of hazing. In fact, the number of hazing deaths per year has increased since the 1990s, when the issue started gaining serious mainstream attention. Even though there are more regulations and negative coverage than ever before, the impunity of hazing has not gone away. It is still very hard to actually achieve consequential punishments for perpetrators accused of illegal hazing. There is often a struggle to define what does and does not count as hazing, and each state has different laws that can be very vague, making prosecutions more difficult. It's also common to pursue civil rather than criminal charges. Victims will sue employees, school districts, and universities which leads to many resignations and fines, but very low rates of incarceration. Since schools usually bear the responsibility to pay these fines and take the most blame, perpetrators are somewhat shielded by their teams and institutions, making it harder to seek disciplinary action. More government involvement and regulation does not equate to better outcomes.
Graph of Hazing Deaths by Decade
Democratic politicians have made it a goal of theirs to ignore our nation's traditions. They have been trying to redefine our judicial and electoral systems, along with challenging long-standing societal norms dealing with marriage, gender roles, and religion. But if they want to actually do something about hazing, they need to take a closer look at the tradition and culture tied into it, instead of writing meaningless bills. Many fraternities, teams, and even military groups have long-standing traditions that originated years before the current members were even there. Senior members in positions of authority are using the same initiation practices that they were subjected to. To them, hazing is not a harmful offense that should be punishable by law. They see it as a historical legacy for the group, creating unity and identity. Even if these actions are condemned or prohibited, they will not disregard the importance of their traditions. The patterns of hazing incidents prove this. The increase in laws, prosecutions, and education on the topic has not done much to actually prevent hazing. These measures aren't much more than liberal PR efforts and virtue signaling, including the McBath bill. Tradition will always win over politics.
Looking into the psychology of hazing, power dynamics is one of the main reasons for why it occurs. In every sports team and fraternity, there are upperclassmen members that are usually the main antagonists when it comes to hazing. Hazing new, younger members allows them to display their authority and power that they believe they have earned. Unfortunately, humans often find it hard to resist when it comes to exercising the power they possess. Even if there is no reason to do so, they will find ways to demonstrate that they are superior to another person, which is a common argument for hazing. Just look at the Stanford Prison Experiment. Students at Stanford University in 1971 were assigned roles as guards and prisoners in an imaginary prison. Quickly, the guards became abusive toward the prisoners, attempting to assert their dominance until eventually the experiment had to be cancelled when it spiraled out of control. It demonstrated the importance of situational dynamics and the temptations that come with authority, which is also seen in hazing. Hazing is another example of how hierarchical systems can lead to an exploitation of power. Humans would not normally treat each other in such harmful ways, but many people become blinded by the control they have and use it as justification for their actions. Passing a bill will not be able to overcome the power dynamics that are deeply entrenched in hazing.
Some people may argue that anti-hazing laws do work by acting as a deterrent and holding perpetrators accountable. But in reality, hazing is more of a social issue than a legal one, and behavior can't be changed by laws alone. Hazing is not a straightforward crime that can be measured, like speeding or stealing. Every case is different and often lacks evidence to go with it. The fact is legislation cannot eliminate hazing. It is too complicated to be fixed that simply, changes to our culture and social systems must come first.
Lucy McBath and her fellow representatives feeling accomplished, they need to be more realistic about how effective their laws actually are at preventing hazing. Despite significant efforts to prosecute and educate, hazing has not been stalled. It isn't necessarily that nothing can be done, but a different, more comprehensive approach must be taken. Accounting for the psychological and social contexts of the issue is key if they want to foster actual change. Until then, the impunity, tradition, and power dynamics of hazing mean that it's not going anywhere and will rise above any laws that progressives come up with.
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