Dear Editor,
Over the past few weeks, the very men that were criticized for their lack of action have been collaborating amongst peers and administrators to be a more inclusive and socially aware community. Several meetings have been held in which administrators and fraternity men have discussed the need for a change within our communities. A good portion of these meetings were in fact suggested and encouraged by the Presidents that were humiliated by comments in this paper.
I would like to pose a question to not only you but also the entire university.
What would you like a group of young men to do in the matter of six short weeks regarding significant issues that this university has been troubled with over the past fifty years? I read the article and I waited for some of your suggestions to our IFC Presidents. I found none but I did not necessarily expect to find any. This is a problem that has existed for many years and there is no easy solution that will fix the problems that exist within our university, this state, and our nation as a whole.
Now, are there significant issues within the Greek community? Obviously. Have these issues existed for significant periods of time? Absolutely. And it goes without question that it is time for a change. There has been a call to action and that call is trying to be answered. I am asking for every single person, not as a student but simply as a human being to please help one another. We have all fallen in the face of adversity. We have all needed that harsh criticism and that reality check to put things back into prospective for us. However, when we criticize another let us not belittle the other but instead offer them our advice and that outside perspective in a respectful and compassionate manner.
Your ending the other day was beautifully said:
“Respect your university and treat her people with dignity, and do what you said you would do. Be fair and civil to us, and live up to your word.”
I ask you do to the same, I ask everyone to do the same, for the love of Ole Miss.
Respectfully,
Austin Dean
