Alum surprised by IFC 'sign' language

The Greek system should have responded to the proposed new alcohol policy by contacting their alumni and not by blasting the University, Greek Alumni/Advisors' Council Chairperson Chris Albani said yesterday. While Albani said he had expected the IFC to respond, he said he was a little surprised at the way they protested. Most of the IFC fraternities hung banners on their houses last week saying "Why pay the bucks? The social life sucks!" "We had a meeting with them before the banners went up and at that time they gave us their comments," he said. "I guess I was a little surprised that the banners went up after we had the meeting." Interfraternity Council President and Alpha Chi Rho brother Morris Massel said last night that although the IFC should have responded directly to the alumni, the IFC feels its point has been made and it is ready to continue discussions with the GAC. "The presidents of the IFC, who I represent, felt that they wanted to respond and forewarn the University of what will happen if this policy goes into effect," he said. "We have resumed talks with the alumni." Massel added that the banners were supposed to have been taken down last night "in the interest of continuing good conversation and negotiations [with the GAC]." Albani said that the proposed policy "got out" before it became an officially completed document and that the proposal is still not finished. He added that the GAC has talked with members from both the IFC and the Panhellenic Council for response to the current proposal. "We have a meeting [after spring break] to respond to the comments that we have received from the leadership of the IFC and Panhel," he said. "I have no guarantee what the changes will be but we will definitely repsond to some of their suggestions." Albani's words echo Larry Moneta, associate vice provost for University Life, who said last week that the fraternities' advisors and alumni -- and not the University -- were the ones who actually proposed the policy. Moneta said last week that people need to understand that the policy is still only a proposal right now. "People don't understand that the University has not changed any policy," he said. "There is not going to be a movement in the University administration to radically or without consultation change our relationship with the fraternity system." Albani said that while the proposed policy is an attempt to protect fraternities and the University from lawsuits, it also concerns a broader issue. "The social pressures are there and the problem is that we are trying to band-aid a societal issue that has yet to be addressed by Congress and our political leaders," he said. "The kids want to drink and we are stuck in the very uncomfortable position of having two different age groups on campus -- those who can drink and those who cannot." Other complaints about the IFC's reaction to the proposed policy appeared Monday as two signs -- similar in style to those signs hung by fraternities in protest last week -- were hung on the outside walls of the Furness Fine Arts Library. One sign read, "Why pay the fee for misogyny?" and the other said, "Why pay the $ when there R frat-boy assholes everywhere?" The signs were both painted in red and blue. It is not known who is responsible for the signs. Massel said there is always "some anti-Greek sentiment" on the University campus, and the people who hung these signs were probably "misinformed." "We're not all these stereotypes that were conveyed by those signs," he said. "We do quite a lot of things that go unrecognized and we're not such evil institutions."

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