A sexually explicit rendition of the Beatles’ “Hey Jude” is getting Ohio University’s Acacia fraternity chapter suspended.
Men from the the fraternity sang the raunchy rendition called “Send Nudes” to OU’s Alpha Delta Pi sorority. The lyrics are degrading, with one of its verses being, “Send nudes, don’t let me down. Take my soft dick and make it harder.” The so-called “serenade” took place last Wednesday night and was captured on video.
“Send nudes, don’t let me down. Take my soft dick and make it harder.” – fraternity brothers singing to sorority pic.twitter.com/60khMIJOs2
— Olivia Hitchcock (@ohitchcock) October 29, 2015
This fraternity’s suspension means that it cannot hold recruitment activities or meetings.
OU’s Acacia fraternity has been reputed to have other allegations regarding sexual assault. On campus. “They are notorious for drugging their free drinks and raping girls,” wrote the OU Student Union on a “Disorientation Guide” for incoming freshmen.
Acacia at OU released the following statement about the guide on their Twitter page.
To whom it may concern: pic.twitter.com/RPBwyY6py4
— Acacia Fraternity (@OhioACACIA) August 27, 2015
A petition to ban the fraternity has accumulated over a thousand signatures.
And the response to the video? Well, the guys at Acacia are saying that people have taken the song “out of context.” We’ll leave this sentiment open to interpretation because it doesn’t really seem like any amount of “context” makes this event acceptable.
Unfortunately, Acacia is one of many Greek organizations to have serious problems in its history. Earlier this year, Old Dominion University’s Sigma Nu chapter outraged the public with offensive signs directed towards freshmen girls. Such signs read “Hope your baby girl is ready for a good time” and “Freshman daughter drop-off, go ahead and drop off mom too…” The Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity at the University of California, San Diego, attempted to hold a “topless rush” campaign that asked freshmen boys to submit photos of topless women with “SAE” written on their chests. And it’s not just respecting women that frats seem to have a problem with—Disturbing instances of racism have been common as well.
The overbearing presence of misogyny in such student organizations cultivates a toxic environment for college students. If the goals of a fraternity are to make positive connections among like-minded peers, this form of like-mindedness—like-mindedness that hurts women—is unnerving and needs to end.