People Question The Point Of Fraternities After Students Found Blindfolded In Basement During Alleged Hazing
VH-studio | Shutterstock After the recent news broke about body cam footage allegedly showing students at the University of Iowa blindfolded in a fraternity basement, people are starting to wonder what the point of frats is in the first place.
Hazing has frequently been part of the fraternity conversation, and every time a news story pops up about a pledging incident going awry, the same concerns surface.
This latest alleged incident at the University of Iowa has many asking, yet again, if frats have gone too far. And while the Greek system was once a chance for students to connect and build new relationships as they embarked on the college journey, many critics are asking if that's what it's about now.
Students were found blindfolded in a basement during an alleged hazing incident.
Body-cam footage from authorities has revealed more details about the alleged hazing incident at the University of Iowa's Alpha Delta Phi fraternity in 2024. Iowa City police and fire departments, along with the University of Iowa police, responded to a fire alarm at the fraternity house in November, where they reportedly found 56 blindfolded pledges, with food thrown on them.
The university investigated the incident and ultimately suspended the fraternity for four years, until 2029. In the footage that was released, authorities reportedly found a basement room full of young men, blindfolded. Some were shirtless. Many appeared to be covered in food.
Police repeatedly urged two men in the video to contact the house dad or anyone "in charge." One man, dressed in a white hoodie, stood in the doorway of the room, holding a beer. He identified himself as "Jose," then provided an ID to officers, saying, "I think it's fake."
Officers in the video asked the shirtless men to leave the room, but they did not move. At one point, an officer asked if anyone was hurt. No one responded. The video caused outrage on social media, where users began questioning why frats are still around.
People questioned the entire point of frats after the footage was released.
In a TikTok video, a content creator named Halina reacted to news from the University of Iowa and issued a warning to college-aged girls who might be at a school with a prevalent frat scene. Halina insisted that girls should remember the body-cam footage if they ever come across a guy who's either pledging or living in a frat house.
"I want you to remember that video, okay?" Halina said. "Because they are all doing [stuff] like that. Like, even if he swears to you that [he] tells you everything, there is actually a thing he doesn't tell you."
There have been countless stories of hazing incidents going wrong in frats across different schools in the country. Some of the incidents have even led to serious injuries and, in some of the worst cases, deaths. Each time, universities promise investigations and even suspend frats, like the University of Iowa, but it seems to happen again and again.
Not all fraternities and sororities are engaging in problematic behavior, and it's certainly important to remember that. But in a time when federal legislation requires colleges to be transparent about these incidents, it's hard not to be critical of the institution as a whole.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
