Ohio Fraternity Is Under Fire for This Incredibly Sexist Song
By:
The Acacia fraternity at Ohio University has been temporarily suspended after a video went viral on social media depicting members of the organization singing a crude song outside the sorority Alpha Delta Pi. The song, which asks the sorority girls to "send nudes," is degrading, inappropriate, and sexist, and it's especially disturbing because many fraternities have been known to promote rape culture.
RELATED: This Powerful Video Shows The Real Cost Of Sexual Assault
The fraternity came under fire after Ohio University senior Olivia Hitchcock posted footage of the group singing a sexually explicit song to the tune of Beatles classic "Hey Jude" on social media last week. According to Hitchcock, the fraternity altered the lyrics to "Send nudes, don't let me down, take my soft dick and make it harder."
Ohio University spokesperson Katie Quaranta told local publication, the Athens News that “a preliminary investigation has produced information linking the behavior to Acacia" and that the fraternity has been issued "a directive to immediately cease and desist all organizational activity while the investigation is ongoing.”
Some reacted to the "Hey Jude" distortion with horror while others said it was all in good fun:
According to the Athens News, a pamphlet circulated around campus at the beginning of the school-year that claimed some Acacia members reside in a house that is “notorious” for “drugging and raping women.” The fraternity’s national organization denied these allegations, but in 2014, a Change.org petition called for Ohio University's Acacia fraternity to be banned due to many drug and rape accusations against the organization.
RELATED: Feminism Myths That Need to Die
This isn't the first time a fraternity has gotten into trouble for belting out an offensive song. Though it wasn't a sexually explicit song, the University of Oklahoma's Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity was shut down in March after a video surfaced online of the members singing a racial slur in a song on a bus.
In October, Indiana University's Alpha Tau Omega (ATO) fraternity was shut down after a video took off on social media of an apparent sexual assault hazing ritual at the house. In March, Penn State University's Kappa Delta Rho (KDR) fraternity was suspended for reportedly posting nude and partially nude photos of women on a private Facebook group. In some pictures, the females look like they're sleeping or passed out, according to CNN. Several years ago, Delta Kappa Epsilon pledges at Yale University made news all over the country for storming through campus and yelling phrases such as “No means yes! Yes means anal!” and “My name is Jack, I’m a necrophiliac; I fuck dead women, and fill them with my semen!”
University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel recently expressed disappointment in the Greek community on his own campus and indicated that the Greek system at large could be at risk of self-destruction. Earlier this year, several sororities and fraternities at the University of Michigan were thrust into the spotlight after they trashed two ski resorts and reportedly caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage.
"It's not my ambition to get rid of fraternities and sororities," Schlissel said last month. "There's a tremendous amount of positive they bring to our campus. [But unless] the students moderate some of the risky behavior ... they may naturally wither and people may want to stop joining them."
For more information on the problem of campus sexual assault and harassment, watch our video on the issue:
