Fraternities join in to protest sexual assault on campus

Fraternity brothers from multiple houses joined over 100 women as they marched from Slayter Hill to Krach Lawn Tuesday evening to show solidarity with sexual violence survivors.
Fraternities represented in the march and subsequent candlelight vigil included Zeta Beta Tau, Sigma Chi, Theta Chi and Kappa Sigma.
Sigma Chi President Sam Spears said he and his brothers went to “show support for Greek life and the survivors.” He said he hopes to revise Sig Chi’s bylaws and implement preventative measures.
Sig Chi was one of 9 fraternities that did not achieve 95% attendance at Sunday’s required sex signals training, which is a program designed to combat sexual misconduct. Fraternities that did not meet the attendance requirement will be fined $5,000, according to a previous Fraternity, Sorority and Cooperative Life statement.
Destiny Westbrook, a senior in the College of Health and Human Sciences, said she was not impressed by the brothers’ presence.
“We all know they’re not doing it to actually support the survivors that their brothers sexually assaulted, but just as a PR statement,” she said. “You could see them taking group pictures.”
ZBT came under fire earlier this semester when a rape was reported at the house.
Marshall Way, a freshman pledge from Kappa Sigma whose friend is a sexual assault survivor, said he thinks ZBT should be kicked off of campus — a sentiment shared by multiple people inside and out of Greek life.
Members of ZBT declined to comment, saying they didn’t want to distract from the event.
Marchers chanted “No means no!” and “1, 2, 3, 4, Brandon Cutler’s got to go!” as they walked down Stadium Avenue into David Ross Road, home to many Greek chapters.
The call to remove the FSCL director stemmed from alleged “victim blaming” statements he made in past Greek life meetings.
Sorority members came out of their houses to cheer on the marchers as they made their way through the streets, including members of Alpha Chi Omega and Alpha Phi.
Eliana Rodriguez, a staff member at Purdue, said she thinks there needs to be definitive action by fraternities and Purdue.
“The brothers who were accused of rape need to be expelled, and their fraternities need to suspended,” Rodriguez said. “Purdue needs to actually take action and support survivors when they speak up.”
Kappa Sigma pledge Cole Rhodes disagreed with suspending the fraternities themselves.
“We don’t want the actions of one house and one kid’s actions to not only affect their house, but all of Greek life,” Rhodes said. “We do seminars all the time about this stuff, we have training We all care a lot."
The march ended with a candlelight vigil on Krach Lawn, where the organizers spoke of their own experiences with sexual assault and read anonymous testimonies.
They stood on a ledge showing their support for protestors by snapping their fingers or cheering. As it grew darker, the candles illuminated the crowd. Some held hands in solidarity.
After protest leaders spoke, they talked about future plans for the movement.
“I want to keep pushing for more mandatory education programs,” Grace Gochnauer, a sophomore in the College of Liberal Arts, said. “Sororities get training on preventing sexual assault far more frequently than fraternities do.”
Sarah Whitaker, a senior in veterinary medicine, said she wants to see “the zero tolerance policy upheld within the fraternities. We would like to see the administration make changes within the Greek life administration and add stricter policies that hold them accountable.”
Gochnauer said fraternities are doing a good job keeping communication lines open, but there is still a lot of change that needs to be made.
“I understand why adjusting the ‘Bring Your Own Beer’ policy is something they’re trying to do,” she said.
“I think it’s the easiest initial step to do, and that’s why they gravitated toward it. It is upsetting all of the focus is being put on alcohol because ultimately, drugged does not equal rape.”
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