Wooster is a safer space without Omegas

On Friday, March 10, Campus Council Chair Jack Johanning sent an email to the campus community, announcing Council’s decision to revoke the charter of Phi Omega Sigma, effective immediately.

After nearly two years of on-campus discussions regarding this group, this outcome is one that is ultimately in the best interest of the community at-large and will have positive effects on campus culture and atmosphere in the immediate and long-term future.

Campus Council has a responsibility to the students on this campus to have their best interests in mind. By revoking the charter of this group, Campus Council has made a decision that protects the reputation of this school and our students.

If Campus Council deemed that the offenses committed by Omega did not warrant a revocation of their charter, I shudder to think what offenses would have.

That being said, counterarguments against Campus Council’s decision have highlighted the uncertainty regarding the particular offender and how this decision allegedly holds the group responsible for the actions of one or two individuals. While I do not want to slander specific individuals of this group, I think this defense illustrates the Omega’s lack of comprehension regarding why the status of their charter was being discussed in the first place.

The Campus Council decision is due to more than one incident in the fall of 2015. It is due to a tradition of behavior by this group that has negatively affected this campus.

Nowhere is this point more aptly illustrated than in the group’s insistence that a chant performed by the group, and caught on camera earlier this semester, shows the Omegas saying “We hate those fucking beers,” rather than “We hate those fucking queers.” It is clear in this video that they are saying “We hate those fucking queers.”

In meetings held with Campus Council, the group also claimed that this particular iteration of the chant was led by visiting alumni, rather than current students.

This defense is misleading. I have heard this chant every year since I stepped foot on this campus. It is ingrained in the culture and tradition of this group. A chant this hateful has no place on our campus, nor does an organization who revels in these words.

I think it’s also important to point out that the now-disbanded group never apologized for broadcasting hate speech on campus and simply pointed fingers at alumni. By doing so, they unwittingly demonstrated why there has been an outcry for Campus Council to review the charter of the organization in the first place.

Campus Council did well to fulfill their function at this College during these proceedings, especially when taking into account obstructionist tendencies from members of this particular Greek organization.

As such, the reception that certain members of this legislative body found upon returning to campus from spring break is unacceptable and perhaps only further illustrates why they decided to vote the way they did in regards to this group.

Because these members are taking flack, I would like to commend them for their decision. Future generations of students at this college will be grateful too.

Jared Berg, an Editor in Chief for the Voice, can be reached for comment at JBerg17@wooster.edu.