Open letter to Greek heads

To the newly elected presidents of the Panhellenic Association and Interfraternity Council:\nFrom North Jordan to Third Street; from Sigma Chi to Delta Gamma; the state of the Greek system is just plain sad. During the past five years, our community has slowly degenerated into an over-regulated and obnoxiously politically correct excuse for what used to be the greatest way to experience IU. During that same period of decline, Greek leadership has not voiced any opposition, and in many instances it has been the Greek leadership itself that has acted against the wishes of most Greeks. It is time for our leaders to finally stand for what the greater part of us wants and to have guts to be our most vocal supporters.\nLet me be up front about what I, and the vast majority of Greeks I know, love about the Greek system. I love hanging out with my friends, going to parties and seeing exactly how many goldfish a 160-pound freshman from Texas can eat (just kidding about the goldfish part). I will remember every formal that I went to, every sorority pair we had, every study table, every spring break and every philanthropy event. These things are what the Greek system means to its members, and these are what you should spend the next year fighting to protect. \nUnfortunately, I also remember certain instances of needless harassment, appeasement and stress. I will never forget being woken up at 4 a.m. on a Thursday, after studying all night for a midterm, because the assistant dean needed to search every room in my house for alcohol. I will never forget the day Serenades was changed from one of the most loved events of the year for both sororities and fraternities into a watered-down retirement home choir concert. Most of all, I will never forget how stressful trying to have a party was and still is. There is little in this world that has caused more harm to more people than "shut-downs," fake "shut-downs" and the use of Everclear punch to avoid detection from the University. The blame for these inventions lies squarely on our leaders who failed to protect our way of experiencing this University. \nThe spineless "yes" women and men who have headed the PHA and IFC for the past several years should stand as an example to you of what not to do. Stop bowing down to administrators on alcohol. Make it clear any policy which fails to recognize that alcohol will always be consumed in social situations by college students is destined to lead to spiked punch, alcohol poisoning and binge drinking. Want proof? Since the "clamp-down" began more than five years ago, there have been more alcohol-related deaths and injuries than before the policy went into effect. \n Selling the Greek case to the University and the public should be an easy task. Greeks give hundreds of thousands of dollars to charity each year. Greek alumni are more likely to stay connected to IU. Greeks have a higher average GPA than the non-Greek University average -- lest we forget we are all here to learn in the first place. This is not to say only Greeks are good members of the IU community; but frankly, with so much good we bring to the University it should be an open and shut case.\nBeta, Pike, Sig Ep, Theta Chi, SAE and Delta Chi have all perished under the previous watch. I charge you, the new presidents of the Greek System, to take a stand and lead us to a place where all the houses are filled again.