The Phi Psi and Delta Upsilon fraternity chapters at Swarthmore College are disbanding, following protests from community members accusing past brothers of exhibiting racist, misogynistic and homophobic behavior, CNN reported.
Dozens of Swarthmore College students first occupied the Phi Psi fraternity house over the weekend after leaked documents detailed disparaging comments against minorities, those who identify as LGBTQ, and women were made by its members, The Washington Post reported.
Outrage ensued particularly after two campus publications, Voices and the Phoenix, published letters documenting the activities of Swarthmore’s chapter of Phi Psi between 2010 and 2016.
The documents also included details of jokes about sexual assault, derogatory conversations about women, minority groups, homophobic and racial slurs.
In response to the protests, the Delta Upsilon chapter at Swarthmore took to Facebook on Tuesday night to announce its closure.
“Over the last few weeks, Swarthmore Delta Upsilon has listened to the concerns and feelings of the campus community. After much discussion, the members of Delta Upsilon have unanimously decided that disbanding our fraternity is in the best interest of the Swarthmore community,” the post reads. “We hope that our former house will provide a space that is inclusive, safe, and promotes healing.”
Swarthmore Phi Psi chapter members followed suit soon after, announcing their chapter’s closure through a Facebook post as well.
“Since the start of our membership, we made it our mission to improve the culture and perception of Phi Psi. Unfortunately, the wounds are too deep to repair, and the best course of action for all those involved is to disband the fraternity completely and give up the fraternity house,” the statement reads. “We condemn sexual violence, racism, homophobia, misogyny, and discrimination in all of its forms, and we will continue as individuals to work to create a campus where these issues are eradicated completely.”
Protesters celebrated Tuesday night upon receiving the news of the two chapter closures, posting videos on social media capturing their elation.
“DU and Phi Psi have disbanded in a testament to the power of survivor-led student organizing and direct action,” the protesters said in a statement. “They made the right decision, even as the College refused to. Our work is not finished yet.
BREAKING: DU has disbanded. Students at the sit in gather in the DU courtyard and chant “our house!” pic.twitter.com/qJwErrqL6x
— Swarthmore Voices (@swatvoices) May 1, 2019
BREAKING: Phi Psi has also disbanded. Both fraternities are gone. pic.twitter.com/sGTQFZkSdo
— Swarthmore Voices (@swatvoices) May 1, 2019
College president Valerie Smith also issued a statement condemning the language described in the documents and termed their actions as antithetical to the values of the school.
“We respect the rights of students at Swarthmore to express their views and beliefs,” Smith wrote. “We will also continue to hold students accountable to our community standards.”
The college has also consulted an independent investigator to look into the prevailing fraternity culture on campus and to determine if any currently enrolled students were involved in such actions. All fraternity activity at Swarthmore has been suspended until the investigation concludes.
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