The Shorthorn - Fraternity branding tradition gains attention after recent TCU incident

HOME

NEWS

News

Fraternity branding tradition gains attention after recent TCU incident

Written by Joan Khalaf, The Shorthorn senior staff

Thursday, 28 January 2010 09:54 PM

Quinton Thompson, UTA’s Omega Psi Phi chapter president, chose to brand his arm with two Omega symbols out of honor for his fraternity. Thompson said it was wrong for Amon Carter IV, a Kappa Sigma member at Texas Christian University, to be branded after heavy drinking. (The Shorthorn: Rasy Ran)

For one UTA fraternity, branding — or burning the organization’s symbols onto a member’s skin — is a sign of dignity.

It isn’t forced or shameful.

For Amon G. “Chance” Carter IV, one of Texas Christian University’s Kappa Sigma fraternity members, his botched branding reportedly happened during heavy drinking and while passed out.

Carter said he consented while intoxicated to being branded with his fraternity’s letters on his buttocks during a Colorado ski trip with some of TCU’s Delta Delta Delta sorority members two weeks ago.

The sorority’s symbols were also branded while he was passed out, according to a Jan. 27 Fort Worth Star-Telegram article.

For UTA’s Omega Psi Phi fraternity chapter president Quinton Thompson, his branding experience was a completely different story — one of tradition, honor and a sober choice.

“It’s not something they make you do,” the criminal justice senior said. “It represents where we come from.”

Thompson and one other fraternity member had the Omega symbol branded on their bodies.

Thompson has two Omega symbols on his left shoulder and another symbol on his chest.

He said the symbols took six months to heal and were treated like an open wound.

“It’s not something everybody chooses to do,” he said. “It’s respectable and understandable if you don’t want to do it.”

Robert-Thomas Jones, Greek Life and University Events program coordinator, said branding was an optional ritual in his fraternity when he was in college.

He chose to get a tattoo instead, but branding has become a phenomenon typically done by multicultural fraternities.

Jones said what happened with Carter was an unfortunate hazing incident.

“Am I going to pretend hazing doesn’t happen? No,” he said. “It’s a phenomenon and it doesn’t just happen in fraternities and sororities. It happens everywhere, and I think if we start looking at it as a cultural phenomenon, we can start to deconstruct hazing.”

UTA has a zero-tolerance hazing policy.

If hazing were to happen at the university, everyone involved would be held accountable, Jones said.

UTA presents the hazing policy clearly to every student who goes through orientation and enters greek life. The university also holds National Hazing Prevention Week.

Thompson’s Omega symbols took six months to heal and said “it’s respectable and understandable if you don’t want to do it.” (The Shorthorn: Rasy Ran)

With rush and recruitment currently happening for the Panhellenic Council and other councils within the next few weeks, parents can review the policies online or with the Parent and Family Center.

Jones said if education on hazing was brought forth earlier in grade school, he thinks college students would be better off and more informed.

“Hazing is often systematic,” he said. “It’s the hardest to deconstruct. If you asked anyone why they hazed, they probably couldn’t tell you much more than that’s what was done to their brothers before them.”

TCU Communications director Lisa Albert released a statement saying that TCU is investigating the incident after Carter’s family informed the university of what went on. TCU’s policy doesn’t allow harming students.

“It’s too early to tell if this incident was related to a student-sponsored activity,” the statement said, “but the health and safety of our students is of utmost importance to TCU.”

TCU’s hazing policy states that branding is prohibited. Hazing is also against Texas state law.

Sheila Johnson, Carter’s cousin, told The Shorthorn that she considers Carter’s injury to be the result of a crime. She said TCU isn’t liable for the incident.

“Nobody deserves that,” she said. “No kid ever deserves to be treated that way.”

Johnson said that by the doctor’s estimate, at least four to five people had to have held Carter down, as severe as his burns were.

“Technically this qualifies as a hazing incident,” she said. “I don’t know what you would call it, other than sheer brutalization. We just hope that he’ll be able to move on with his life.”

Thompson said what happened to Carter was wrong.

“Hazing is not acceptable,” he said. “It’s very unfortunate for this young man. He can’t take that back. He will have that burn for the rest of his life.”