A former fraternity leader at Northern Arizona University just pleaded guilty to hazing a pledge who died. That's not a headline about bad luck or a tragic accident. It's about choices made in a room full of people who thought belonging was worth more than someone's safety. This hits close to home for anyone who's ever been part of a club, a team, or a house where the line between "bonding" and "broken" got blurry. We talk a lot about building community on campus, and we should. But this case is a hard reminder that the word "community" means nothing if it runs on pressure instead of care. It's the same instinct that shows up when we read about Report Highlights Security Lapses at University Where Speaker Was Killed or Yosemite Fall Claims Young Wrestler’s Life, moments where the systems we trust to protect us let someone slip through.
Here's the thing about hazing: it doesn't start with a plan to hurt anyone. It starts with a tradition, a "you gotta earn it" mentality, and a group of people who are scared to be the first to say no. That's not strength, that's fear wearing a letterman jacket. And for every pledge who survives a hell night, there's a story like this one where someone didn't. The guilty plea is a step toward accountability, but it's not a fix. It's a warning that "we've always done it this way" is the weakest argument in any organization. As students, we have more power than we think. We can decide that our clubs, our teams, and our houses don't need to break people down to build loyalty. We can be the ones who ask, "Is this worth someone's life?" before we pass the cup, the paddle, or the blindfold.
This also connects to how we handle risk and responsibility in other parts of campus life. When Finding Home & Honors: Building Community at Sac State talks about creating belonging, it's the opposite of hazing. That story is about building people up through shared purpose, not testing their limits. It's about showing up for each other in ways that don't require someone to lose themselves. That's the kind of community worth fighting for. So here's my honest take: if you're in a group that uses fear, secrecy, or exhaustion as a bonding tool, you're not in a family, you're in a liability. And if you're watching it happen and staying quiet, you're part of the problem. The real test of leadership isn't how many people you can get to do what you say, it's whether you're willing to walk away from a tradition that could get someone killed.
The specific detail to watch now is how the university and the national fraternity respond beyond this plea. Will they change their policies, or just their PR? That's the question. Because a guilty plea in court doesn't mean the culture is fixed. It means one person got caught. The rest of us have to decide if we're going to keep pretending that a little hazing is just part of the deal. I'd rather be the person who says "bet" to a study session than the one who says "I'll cover for you" at 2 a.m. while someone's in the hospital. Future me will thank me for that. And future them might still be alive.
