The issue of student safety in initiations has been dragged, slurring and puking, into the spotlight, after a Nazi/torture-related incident at a recent initiation at the University of Gloucestershire. Suddenly, this underworld rite of passage, previously passed off as just a bit disgusting and hardcore, is being criticised in the cold light of day by the national media.
Yes, under any other guise, it would be construed as bullying or even physical abuse. But it’s also undeniable that the inclusive initiation ceremonies build teamwork and camaraderie inside squads. Even if some team members may experience shaky Vietnam-esque flashbacks in Somerfields whenever they pass by containers of Bovril/tabasco sauce/Lea and Perrins.
Paradoxically, it’s perhaps a better thing (if only for welfare) that sport is so undervalued by the university. A bigger emphasis and importance would mean larger clubs, more peer pressure, and the more vile and crude displays. As it is, you’re more likely to see twenty nude footballers storming Clifford’s Tower than some kind of ritual disembowelment. York Sport President Alex Lacy no less admitted: “The common sense of York’s sport clubs is very good: they’re generally more naked than dangerous!” A few of you may be intrigued at Lacy’s surprising confession that he is in fact a fan of flashing and this could well be why the university have decided to regulate the initiations. Freshers can now say no to a chunder cocktail or a willy windmill. But for those brave enough to refuse; the repercussions could prove far worse. Infuriating older members desperate to relieve their sadistic tendencies will never be a great way to make friends and this is surely the first step to becoming the club’s whipping boy/girl, or even worse, the goalie.
University life is about more than just your degree. It’s a chance to learn life skills before you enter the big bad world, where downing a pint in three seconds is suddenly no longer an impressive social tool. Unfortunately, a few American students in New Orleans took this positive attitude a little too far. Hoping to foster their cookery skills whilst also initiating new ‘friends’, fraternity members burned two students using hot water mixed with ingredients used for boiling crabs. They now potentially face up to 15 years in prison, the jokers.
Stories and rumours of extreme initiations run rife throughout university but very rarely make national news. It is often a death that excites the sensationalist tabloid hacks. One such case, that of Exeter student Gavin Britton, would make an AA member proud. To impress his fellow golf club chums, Gavin consumed four vodkas, three pints of cider, a glass of wine, several sambucas, and a pint of spirits. Unfortunately, he suffered alcohol poisoning and the only hole he found that night was his grave.
This may sound rather daunting to any freshers intending to join a club. But worry not, these cases are rare and York puts the emphasis on education and experimentation rather than extermination. Initiations can even make perfect case studies to liven up boring essays. Biologists will learn how the body responds to gallons of treble vodkas and mixers and chemists will appreciate just how many sweaty hormones can squeeze into one dancefloor. Any aspiring actors will perfect the ‘alert-when-sober’ look often needed to deceive a bouncer. Economists will truly understand the concept of supply and demand when ordering drinks at a busy bar whilst politics students will be studying their club captains and realising how power (and absinthe) really can go to people’s heads.
So why not suffer the annual humiliation and inevitable stomach-pump? Initiations are a university tradition. Generations of tramps, nudists, and politicians were once fresh-faced freshers naïve to the wicked ways of university sport. To do away with them would be like Amy Winehouse without her addictions, or Joey Barton preferring a quiet night in to stabbing people with cigars. We may despise their flaws, but without them they would be dull and devoid of controversy. What would you rather be remembered for: scoring a goal or being able to drink beer up your arse whilst singing the Namibian national anthem…naked?