Blogpost # 6: Foolish Hazing Distorts The Real Meaning of Brotherhood

What is hazing? Based on my understanding Hazing is the process in which the aspiring member (Neophyte) needs to undergo some difficult and often humiliating training as part of the initiation in order to be accepted in a particular organization, and also this process involves misconduct of the elder member that can inflict physical and psychological harm to the neophyte. This kind of activity is commonly used when you're joining Fraternity and Sorority in college, or a Gang. But how come many people would still insist that hazing is completely different from bullying. For me, I agree with this quote:

"When it meets this three criteria (imbalance in power, intent to cause harm and threat for future harm), its bullying  - plain and simple", says Deborah Carpenter

An article entitled Bullying and Hazing - Is There a Difference? By Sherrie Gordon from the site bullying.about.com point out the difference between Hazing and bullying. First is that bullying is an aggression performed by a group  or a single person that happens repetitively that includes physical harassment's like punching, kicking, pushing, tripping, strangling, hitting with an object, slapping and kneeing; and verbally assault like name-calling, gossiping, criticizing, threatening, blaming, accusing and slut shaming. Sometimes bullies exclude their victim from the group or social alienation to hurt their victim or to take away its sense of belonging.

Meanwhile, Hazing may use some of those tactics. But hazing is justified as a ritual and tradition that someone must go through in order to become part of the group. A ritual that can make its new member to feel mental and physical discomfort like being beaten up, feel embarrassed and humiliated like walking around the campus without anything to wear, and ridiculed like wearing a girls underwear while dancing, especially if you're a boy. 

Sherri Gordon stated that "the difference between these two are subtle. But after all, the same power differences are involved and the same intimidation tactics are used."

The big difference between bullying and hazing is that bullying is never about accepting someone into a group, it's about excluding someone. Second is that Hazing is performed by a group or a team, while bullies act alone or as a group. The third is that Hazing can be experienced only if you're a old enough (12-years-old and above), while bullying can occur at much younger age (3 years-old and above). And is that Hazing is more accepted by many people than bullying. "Even though its should not be, there should not be justifiable reason for hazing," says Sherrie Gordon

College is a demanding and overwhelming place. That's why student creates a group and join students organization that will give social benefit of friends that will give emotional support and help them cope with the new environment. But joining a group is not that easy. Unfortunately, in order to be accepted in this kind of student organization (Fraternity and Sorority) you need to undergo some ritual where you need to experience the same hardships that the senior member had experienced too as their tradition for the sake of what they called as "BROTHERHOOD"

I've read another article entitled Hazing Deaths College Fraternities Neophytes by Melanie Gueco from the site www.educationspace360.com

Just like in many countries Hazing had been happening in the Philippines for a very long time and still existing until now. The tragedy that hazing can present is not new to the Filipino people. But how come many Fraternities and Sororities still perform this kind of brutality, this kind of stupidity? Can they see the agonizing pain on their victims mother? Watching them in the news is enough to make you feel how heart-shattering it may be when your loved-one died from the cruelty of hazing. Imagine, your lifeless child lying in the morgue with all black and blue on his body. It makes you wonder what kind of suffering did your child had experienced. What kind of people can do something like this to your precious child. The pain is too much. It's like your heart is filled with air and it is hard to breath. It makes them mad, and then cry again when they remember their child. Words cannot express how devastating it is for a parents to be in a situation like this.

And still, we can't blame those guys because they want to join a fraternity and then died from the process of hazing. Because there are so many things that a brotherhood can give to you. Some join because they can get scholarships, because someone will back you up when you have a problem. When you look at it, you can say that brotherhood is really a good thing. But, it's not!! Today's brotherhood is nothing like a piece of crap, it's bullshit!!, they see brotherhood in a twisted perception. They make their aspiring brother feel embarrassed, they beat it until it cannot move. And then if you overcome this kind of situation you will become their brothers? And what will happen if you don't pass? You're not worthy of becoming their brothers. That's why they'll just throw your body to a cliff or in a river? That makes no sense, the initiator should know when to stop if he/she feels like the neophyte will not finish the ritual and should make a verdict immediately that the neophyte is not going to be a member. They shouldn't wait until it's too late that the neophyte has been dead already because of harsh conditions.

 "This is why it is a sorry fact that hazing is done to people by the men who are supposed to be his brothers and protectors," says Melanie Gueco

The author is saying that this kind of brotherhood is nothing like fake, it should not be tolerated. The author tells a story about how a brotherhood should really work. It is a story that happened in 1892 about a brotherhood that perform an initiation to its neophyte by making it to stay in a dark room lit only by a single candle, and the neophytes loyalty was put into a test by asking important details about the organization. This brotherhood becomes one of the most respectable group even right now people from around the Philippines is still giving importance to this brotherhood. This revolutionary organization is called as the "Kataastaasan Kagalang-galangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan" or simply KKK or the Katipunan. This group was formed by Andres Bonifacio, one of the national hero of the Philippines. Its main goal is simply to defend and to free the country from Spanish colonization. The aspiring members of the Katipunan, which rose from tens of thousands, were made to undergo such initiation to test their loyalty to the brotherhood. The initiator will ask if they are willing to die for the sake of their country and for the brotherhood. 

They use this kind of torture to prevent anyone to give crucial information that will endanger the group especially when captured by the Spanish. And the sacrifice of those who died from torture from the hands of the Spaniards have not gone in vain. Because the Philippine declaration of independence was proclaimed on June 12, 1898 in Cavite II el Viejo (Kawit, Cavite) by the reading of Acta de la proclamación de independencia del pueblo Filipino by Filipino revolutionary forces under Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo.

"This was the kind of brotherhood that they had then. The type of fraternity worth dying for since it is their country’s freedom they are actually fighting for. This happened more than a century ago. This is no longer the case now. College fraternities exist to provide advantages to its members, not death," says Melanie Gueco

We should always remember that brotherhood is a fraternal organization that all members benefited to its existence according to the rules and standards that was followed and abide by the elders and the newly members (neophytes). In addition, an initiation that includes beating really hard, and torture is not really necessary either it is constructive or destructive in purpose. I mean, we're no longer in war at this time with any country, there's no crucial information that needs to be hidden by any fraternity for their existence, and also because this kind of tradition can kill or put your new member in danger. And fraternity need members to generate funds for the future activity of the organization but how can they recruit if its new member is already dead? or traumatized because of the initiation?. So stop this IDIOCY!! STOP HAZING, STOP BULLYING!!