There is a lot going on in the domain of the federal government and federal courts that pertain directly to the sorority experience as we know it.
Most importantly, in August,
the federal judge presiding over the lawsuit against Harvard and its unfair sanctions policy
denied
Harvard’s motion to dismiss.
This ruling is a good sign and provides some hope that the judge will find Harvard’s blacklisting policy against students in single-sex organizations to be discriminatory. (See related story immediately below.)
Congressional Acts Affecting Greek Life
The
Fraternity & Sorority Action Fund
, of which SDT is a member, is on a mission to advance the following bills:
Collegiate Freedom of Association Act (HR3128)
The CFAA would allow students the right to freely join any single-sex association without penalties from universities or colleges. FSPAC is working diligently with members of Congress to have it inserted into the forthcoming Higher Education Reauthorization Act. The CFAA currently had 25 sponsors in the House of Representatives. Representatives Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and Ruben Gallego (D-AZ/ΣΧ), both Harvard graduates, are our co-lead sponsors of the bill. Fraternity and sorority leaders nationwide are working hard to secure co-sponsors for the bill in the Senate.
END ALL Hazing Act (HR 3267)
16 members of the House of Representatives have signed on as co-sponsors. This act requires any college and/or university to report to campus police and law enforcement within 72 hours any hazing incident that “involves serious bodily injury or significant risk of serious bodily injury of a student.” In late October 2019, the bill was introduced in the U.S. Senate by Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Bob Casey (D-PA).
REACH Act (HR662/S 706)
The Report and Educate About Campus Hazing (REACH) Act has gained support over recent months – 67 House co-sponsors and six co-sponsors of the Senate version. Introduced in January 2019, this bill would require institutions of higher education to disclose hazing incidents. The lead sponsors are Representative Marcia Fudge (D-OH/ΔΣΘ) and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN).
Please share this information with your sisters and contact your representatives and other key members of Congress who are sympathetic to, and supportive of, our causes.
If you have any questions about SDT's involvement, please contact Government Relations Chairman,
Lindsay Braverman Forman
at
LindsaySDT@gmail.com
.
