Congresswoman Wilson to Introduce Federal Anti-Hazing Bill in January

Rep. Frederica S. Wilson (D-Fla.)

Tuesday December 27, 2011

Washington, DC – Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) announced today that she plans to introduce a federal anti-hazing bill when Congress reconvenes in January. A staunch fighter of bullying and hazing during her career as a school principal and school board member, Rep. Wilson decided that action is needed at the federal level to combat hazing incidents like the tragedy that claimed drum major Robert Champion’s life at Florida A&M University in November.

“Hazing is demeaning, dangerous, and, sadly, deadly,” said Rep. Wilson. “It’s time that we put an end to this horrible and humiliating ritual once and for all, so that no more students suffer the way that Robert and others have.”

Rep. Wilson fought hazing throughout her four-year reign as the South Atlantic Regional Director for Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, the first sorority founded by black students on the campus of Howard University in 1908. Rep. Wilson was nicknamed by a Miami Herald reporter as “THE HAZE BUSTER” because of her very public stance to stamp out hazing on college campuses.

“I am having policy discussions now with presidents of historically-black colleges and universities, band members and presidents of Greek-letter organizations so that we will be able to craft a strong bill for introduction next month,” Rep. Wilson said.

Rep. Frederica Wilson's hazing bill may include penalties for bystanders of rituals

Democratic U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson plans to introduce a federal hazing ban when she returns to Congress in mid-January. Details of the bill aren't yet ironed out, though she is consulting officials from the (United States) Justice Department and universities to figure out how far she can go, she said.

"I've been toying with different scenarios," she told (Miami) Times/Herald. "I want it to be broad enough to affect a lot of people so they will stop." 

She wants her bill to target the people who haze, the person being hazed and those who are present for the ritual and "don't report it or intervene."

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Rep. Frederica S. Wilson is a first-term congresswoman representing the 17th District of Florida, including Northern Miami-Dade and Southeast Broward Counties. She is a former state legislator and school principal and the founder of the 5000 Role Models for Excellence Project, a mentoring program for young males at risk of dropping out of school. Wilson earned her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Fisk University in 1963 and her Master of Science in Elementary Education from the University of Miami in 1972.

3rd Mother of former FAMU student claims daughter was hazed

23 year old Sean Hobson (above) 
is charged with hazing and battery.

AUGUSTA, Georgia - Doretha Smith learned of Robert Champion’s death just hours after it happened. Her 21-year-old daughter woke her at 3 a.m. to relay the news she had received via text message. Both mother and daughter immediately suspected that the Florida A&M University drum major had been hazed.

Smith’s daughter –- who asked not to be named in this story for fear of reprisals -- was repeatedly beaten three years ago as a freshman member of FAMU's famed Marching 100, Smith told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She said the freshman clarinet player was slapped and punched in the stomach and chest, beatings she only admitted to her mother after calling in tears and asking to withdraw from the university.

Smith said she was especially disturbed when her daughter told her that one of those who hit her was a student who had played with her in the Southwest DeKalb High School band: Sean Hobson ...



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Bethune-Cookman: No other students coming forward to support hazing claim

Trudie Kibbe Reed, Ed.D
President
Bethune-Cookman University

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida - A former member of the Bethune-Cookman Marching Wildcats said he could never predict when upper classmen baritone (horn) players would force him and other freshmen to do strenuous exercises behind a school building in August and hit them in the back of the neck after band practice.

"Our heads would be down the majority of the time and you couldn't see and it was dark," said Christopher King, about what he called hazing incidents after 9 p.m. behind the School of Business. "It was numerous times. You never knew (when it would happen.)"

The exercises, King said in a phone interview this week, included squatting with their arms out and heads down while being hit in the back of the neck. The breaking point, the 18-year-old said, was when he and the other five freshmen in his section were one day made to roll in the muddy water.

"We would run into the water and get back up and get slaps in the back of the head. Roll in the water again and slap in the back of the head again.

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Schedule change in Florida; XU Rush to play Bobcats first

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana's men's basketball team will play St. Thomas (Fla.) at 7 p.m. EST Wednesday and Florida Memorial at 5 p.m. EST Thursday in the Miami Gardens Classic.

St. Thomas, host of the event, revised the pairings this past week. Xavier originally was scheduled to play Florida Memorial on the first day of this fourth annual event. Both Xavier games will be played in the Fernandez Center at St. Thomas.

This is Xavier's third consecutive appearance in the event. The Gold Rush defeated Florida Memorial 56-46 and lost 79-61 to St. Thomas in 2009, then beat Webber International 69-42 and lost 61-58 to Dakota Wesleyan in 2010. Xavier defeated St. Thomas 69-59 at The Barn on Nov. 11.

Xavier is 7-3 and ranked 21st in NAIA Division I. Junior guard Nick Haywood averages a team-leading 10.4 points, and senior forward Cordell Hadnot averages 10 points and a team-best 7.6 rebounds.

St. Thomas is 7-6 with a six-game winning streak, and Florida Memorial is 4-7 with a five-game losing streak. FMU will play host to Palm Beach Atlantic on Wednesday before facing the Gold Rush.

Fourth Annual Miami Gardens Classic
Miami Gardens, Fla.
NAIA Men's Basketball
Hosts: St. Thomas, Florida Memorial
Participating Schools: Florida Memorial, Palm Beach Atlantic, St. Thomas, Xavier (La)

Tournament Schedule:
Wednesday, December 28

5 p.m. - Palm Beach Atlantic vs. Florida Memorial
7 p.m. - Xavier (La) vs. St. Thomas

Thursday, December 29

5 p.m. - Xavier (La) vs. Florida Memorial
7 p.m. – Palm Beach Atlantic vs. St. Thomas

BOLD GAMES TO BE HELD AT FERNANDEZ FAMILY CENTER ON STU CAMPUS

By Ed Cassiere, SID

VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

VISIT: XULAATHLETICS

VISIT: GCACSPORTS

Wednesday: Morgan State Bears at Saint Joseph's Hawks

SAINT JOSEPH’S HAWKS (9‐3) vs. MORGAN STATE BEARS (2‐7)
Game #13 • December 28, 2011 • 7 p.m.
Hagan Arena • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

PHILADELPHIA - Saint Joseph's (9-3) returns to action on Wednesday, December 28, when it hosts Morgan State (2-7) at 7 p.m. It marks the end of a five-game homestand for the Hawks.

Hawks' head coach Phil Martelli will be going for his 310th career win, which would make him SJU's all-time leader in victories.  The game will be broadcast on SportsRadio 610 WIP (AM) with with Matt Martucci and Joe Lunardi calling the action. Audio and video streaming of the game will be available on SJUHawks.com. The audio stream, is available free of charge. LISTEN LIVE

A subscription to Hawks All-Access is necessary to view the game. VIEW GAME

GAME NOTES

GAME NOTES: • If the Hawks win tonight, Phil Martelli will become Saint Joseph's all-time leader in career victories with 310, surpassing the mark of 309 set by Bill Ferguson in 25 seasons (1928-53). • The Hawks received three votes in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll for this week, marking the third straight week they have gotten votes. It is the first time since 2007-08 that SJU has received votes in one of the weekly rankings. • Saint Joseph's has won four in a row and six of the last seven. • C.J. Aiken continues to lead the nation in blocked shots with his 4.5 average, while the Hawks rank third (8.1) as a team. • The Hawks are meeting a MEAC team for the second game in a row. SJU defeated Coppin State a week ago here at Hagan Arena. • Saint Joseph's is finishing up a string of five consecutive home games on campus. The only other time this occurred in school history was February 1990. • Saint Joseph's is again sporting one of the youngest teams in the nation, with no seniors, two juniors, five sophomores and three freshmen. (More on page 6)

MARTELLI MILESTONE: A win tonight would make Phil Martelli the Hawks' all-time leader in career victories with 310, surpassing the mark of 309 set by Bill Ferguson 25 seasons (1928-53). The coach, now in his 17th season, will be on top of the list of a distinguished group of coaches who comprise the strong tradition of SJU basketball.

SJU COACHES BY VICTORIES COACH YRS W L 1. Phil Martelli 17 309 212 Bill Ferguson 25 309 208 3. Jack Ramsay 11 234 72 4. Jim Boyle 9 151 114 5. Jack McKinney 8 144 77

Courtesy SJU Hawks Athletics

Wednesday: Howard University Lady Bison at Seton Hall Pirates

SETON HALL VS. HOWARD GAME NOTES (.pdf)
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2011 - SOUTH ORANGE, N.J.
WALSH GYMNASIUM - 7:00 PM
SETON HALL (7-6) vs. HOWARD (6-5)
VIDEO STREAM: SHUPIRATES.COM • RADIO: WSOU 89.5 FM

PIRATES' STATUS
Seton Hall was outscored 35-22 in the second half as they fell to William & Mary on Dec. 21 by a score of 61-54. Senior Tajay Ashmeade secured her second straight double-double with 13 points and 21 rebounds. The Tribe used a 17-0 run to spark the comeback and led by as many as 12 points before a late rally by the Pirates. SHU rallied to pull within five with 1:36 on the clock, but failed to score the rest of the way and William & Mary converted from the free-throw line down the stretch to preserve the win.

BISON'S STATUS
Howard improved its win streak to five games after defeating the University at Buffalo, 81-57, on Dec. 20, marking the widest margin of victory this year for the Lady Bison, and a season-high in points scored. Tamoria Holmes led all scorers with a game-best 26 points, while Saadia Doyle notched her sixth double-double of the season with 25 points and 11 boards. Howard scored the first 11 points of the game and never trailed despite a slew of comeback tries by the Bulls.

BEAST OF THE BOARDS
Senior Tajay Ashmeade posted her fifth double-figure rebounding game and second straight double-double after pulling down 21 boards and adding 13 points against William & Mary on Dec. 21. The rebounding total is tied for the highest by any BIG EAST player this season. She is the only current Pirate to have a double-figure rebounding game this season.

SHU VS. THE MEAC
The Pirates are 10-2 all-time against schools currently in the MEAC. Their only losses came to South Carolina State in 1979 and to Morgan State in 2009. The fourth meeting against the Bison will make them SHU's most common opponent within the MEAC.

BOMBS AWAY
The Pirates' 11 three-pointers against Drexel on Dec. 12 tied the single-game record for triples. It is the second time SHU has mounted double-figure trifectas in a game. They knocked down 10 treys in their win over New Hampshire on Nov. 16. The record was originally set against Syracuse on Feb. 13, 2008.

EASY BEING GREEN
Junior Terry Green exploded for 17 points off the bench against Drexel on Dec. 12. The forward shot 6-for-6 from the floor with five three-point goals.

SHU IN BIG EAST OPENERS
The Pirates fell to 12-18 all-time in BIG EAST openers after their loss to UConn on Dec. 9. SHU's last win to open conference play came on Jan. 5, 2008 when the Pirates topped Cincinnati, 54-43, in Walsh Gym.

MAGNIFICENT MORRIS
Through her last eight games, junior Brittany Morris is averaging 14.5 points per game. She recently set career-highs in scoring after in back-to-back games against ODU and Hofstra.

Courtesy SHU Athletics

On Hazing, FAMU, and Hypocrisy

By Lee Bessette, College Ready Writing, INSIDE HIGHER ED

Like the situation at Penn State, what’s been going on at FAMU is another topic I’ve been trying to avoid writing about. One of the reasons is because of my own brief history as a faculty member there; I was on the tenure track there for a year but left to keep our family together when my husband got a better tenure-track job. Another reason is that hazing is a clearly sensitive topic, particularly in higher education but seemingly also in society at large. The extent that our society both implicitly tolerates and explicitly encourages hazing is maddening and unsurprising.

I was bullied as a child, not just at school, but also at swimming. I was locked in lockers, mentally tormented, and often physically assaulted in the pool, where it can easily be made to look like it was an “accident.” These weren’t initiation rituals, as enduring them in no way made me a part of the team, but they closely resembled the physical and mental anguish friends of mine suffered in “legitimate” initiations to sports teams.

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