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Last week, both The Brandeis Hoot and the Justice ran front-page articles discussing an alleged sexual assault case between two university students. The incident, according to The Hoot is alleged to have occurred at a fraternity's rush party on Dartmouth Street. Since news of this incident broke on campus, rumors about it have been flying around as quickly as people's gossip will carry them.
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According to both articles, the Greek Awareness Council-a recognized campus group dedicated to bringing Greek life to Brandeis-sent out an off-the-record email to the members of Greek life, asking them not to publicly discuss the incident. This email was intended to stifle rumors that could harm the reputations of the fraternities and sororities at Brandeis.
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This was a responsible move on the GAC's part. While its motivation seemed primarily political, its action could serve to prevent people from adding to the rumor mill, which would complicate matters for the police and the parties involved in the alleged crime. The GAC has made it eminently clear that its organizations will stand aside and allow the investigation to commence without interference.
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While both papers published quotes from the email, it baffles me that The Hoot felt the need to publicize this off-the-record email in the manner that they did. The article seemed to insinuate that the Greek organizations were attempting to cover up the issue, and keep it out of the public eye. Even if this were the case, there is certainly no evidence for it. The Hoot's quotations from the GAC merely showed their intent to quash rumors, not hide evidence.
There was no need to shine any light on this private, off-the-record email. It is a case of dubious journalistic ethics, and the editor of a school newspaper ought to know better than to publicize private information with no good cause. There was nothing wrong or untoward being done in the GAC's email, and this seems to have only been an immature attempt to paint the Greek organizations in a bad light.
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Despite their good handling of the situation surrounding the sexual assault allegations, the Greek organizations can do more to prevent future incidents. In the case of any crime, no one ought to be blamed for it but the criminal, but all who partake in creating a scenario conducive to crime must rethink their approach to recruitment. Rush parties, for example, are a veritable powder keg for sexual assault and harassment. 
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These events carry an implicit invitation for first-years to come in and drink underage. Alcohol-fueled, jam-packed parties of any type are hotbeds for unwelcome advances, and new students are particularly vulnerable in unfamiliar situations like rush events. While fraternity members may take some responsible steps to keep their parties safe, they are ultimately treading on thin ice by hosting these sorts of events. They are, as lawyers say, liability nightmares.
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A desire for your party to look cool in order to entice new recruits should never outweigh responsibility. While fraternities as a whole should not be held liable for crimes committed by individuals during their house parties, all party hosts should certainly take the initiative to reduce and hopefully remove the possibility of sexual assault at their events. 
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The fraternity involved commendably took immediate steps in the right direction when the sexual assault allegations surfaced by halting rush parties and suspending the accused member. This semester, the fraternity will not host any more rush parties. They ought to consider continuing in this direction in the future, and weigh the merits of different recruitment events for the future. If it is truly brotherhood that they seek, they will find none at these rush parties; these events do not bring out camaraderie, but rather, predation.
Much of the campus community understands this trend about rush parties, which made it seem likely to many that sexual assault could occur at a rush event. Greek organizations-for their own sake-should strive to make sexual assault at their events as inconceivable a possibility as it is for events hosted by Waltham Group, or a science club.
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Just because an event is conceivable, however, does not mean that it should become a topic for the water cooler. Alleged sexual assaults should not encourage Greek-bashing, and more importantly, they should not inspire gossip.
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Sexual assault cases must be treated with discretion, by everyone who is affected by them. Sexual assault is a very serious accusation, with life-altering consequences for all parties to the alleged crime. Consider the case if the allegation is true: Somewhere on campus, a girl was sexually assaulted. She is likely traumatized and upset-yet compulsive gossips make her into conversation fodder. The emotional scars would be bad enough; social scarring need not be added.
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The accused, too, has rights and must be considered innocent until proven guilty. Consider the case if the allegation is false: Surely, if you can conceive of a person malicious enough to commit sexual assault, you can conceive of a person malicious enough to lie about it. This sort of accusation can change people's perceptions towards a person, and ruin his or her reputation. We've all played "telephone," and it's quite obvious how easily stories can be distorted through rumors. 
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Could you imagine the pain of an innocent person who would forever wrongly be known as "the rapist?" The Court of Public Opinion is merciless. It is not objective, as every member of the jury is shown different evidence, and its verdicts can never be appealed.
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It is best to allow such matters to be handled by the police and the real courts, as they are the only ones with the tools necessary to make clear judgments. While it is tempting to want to see justice, it is crucial to remember that when we discuss how justice must be obtained, we do so in the abstract. We need to set the legal guidelines by which the police and courts operate, but allow them to function unimpeded after doing so.
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If you want justice, let the system do its job. If you don't like the way the system works, work to change it on a legislative level-but do not stick yourself into the gears of the judicial system. If we turn every crime into an issue of public outrage by treating sensitive crimes as front-page tabloid news, we risk impairing the justice system's ability to do its job properly. Such an immature approach prevents justice and is almost guaranteed to harm the innocents involved in the crime.