On Sept. 9, the House of Opulence posted a statement on their Instagram profile. “Know you’re not alone, and there are resources to help you and get you justice,” the post said.
Entitled “Hate Has No Place on Our Campus,” the message informed the DePauw community of a recent surge of hate speech on campus. The post condemned this behavior, encouraging students to speak out and providing a list of resources to do so.
An anonymous source from the House of Opulence came forward to The DePauw with hopes of sharing their experience with a recent on-campus bias incident. With the intention of keeping the source anonymous, they are referenced as Riley in this article.
“So my friends and I went to a certain fraternity and immediately were met with dirty looks and uncomfortable closeness. We walked through (the fraternity house), and he (fraternity member) said some transphobic remarks about me,” Riley said.
After being followed through the house, Riley and their friends couldn’t find their way out the same door. During this event, Riley mentioned people yelling at them through the house.
“(The fraternity members said,) ‘You don’t belong here. You’re nothing. Get out.’ They followed us all the way outside and physically tried to intimidate me and my boyfriend who were there,” Riley said.
After leaving the house, Riley met with their friends at a different party. During their conversation, Riley learned about similar homophobic remarks and racial slurs transpiring that same night at that house.
“I was really just flabbergasted and angry more than anything. I was scared that I would be hurt because these dudes are big and coming at us. There weren’t as many of us as there were fraternity members,” Riley said.
Riley emphasized the distinction between the house’s right to free speech and the risk of physical intimidation. They mentioned how the events that night did not make them personally upset, but made them shocked that this is happening on campus right now.
“My friends and myself don’t feel safe,” Riley said.
Riley contacted DePauw Police, Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) Frae Binder, Associate Dean of Student Success Jeannette Johnson-Licon and Assistant Director of the Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI) Joseph Harris. A subsequent report was filed to the Bias Incident Response Team (BIRT), and the investigation is still ongoing.
The BIRT process begins with a report, in which incidents that are considered criminal will be investigated by DePauw police. Then, the BIRT team will refer the student to provide support. The team will then educate the DePauw community of the incident as well as track the incident, recommending initiatives to prevent future incidents on campus.
“I just felt like it was a call of action for me, and I can make sure that it doesn’t happen to other people,” Riley said.
After discussing the incident, the House of Opulence put out the Sept. 9 statement on social media. Previous house parent and founder of the House of Opulence Aaron Trinidad ‘24 helped the organization put together the statement.
“The House of Opulence was created on the foundation that everyone deserves to be celebrated and embraced at DePauw, no matter their identity,” Trinidad said. “It’s through the celebration of a rich Queer history of Black and Brown people that we ultimately wanted to show all students at DePauw that it’s important to foster spaces where people can be their most authentic selves and find joy in that.”
After founding the organization, Trinidad is proud to see that the legacy is living on through the current house parents. Trinidad was disappointed and unhappy to hear about the incident but thought it was admirable that members of the House of Opulence and the DePauw community are taking a stance.
“There is power in numbers, and what I hope to see in the future are people, especially Queer people, not asking for permission to be themselves. I want the campus to see the beauty and strength in a community that uplifts one another instead of one that's complacent in its destruction,” Trinidad said.
Binder expressed her sadness when asked about the incident. She wants to see the Greek community as one where everyone is welcome and embraced for who they are.
“This is still an ongoing investigation. If anyone has witnessed anything related to the incident, or any other bias-related incidents, I ask that they please either reach out to me as the Director of FSL, or report directly to the BIRT team,” Binder said. “While I am not on the BIRT team, working in Greek life, I work in conjunction with the BIRT team that is co-chaired by Dr. Jackson and Dr. Day.”
While the BIRT team is one of the avenues where this incident is being addressed, Binder has also spoken directly to Greek Council leaders who are actively working together to address homophobia in the Greek and DePauw community.
“I cannot thank the student who reported it enough, because only when incidents are reported forward can we collectively take action against bias,” Binder said.
Riley mentioned that they are satisfied thus far with DePauw’s response. After meeting directly with Binder and identifying people involved in the incident, they were comforted by the attitude of seriousness and upsetness through which Binder is taking the incident.
“Everyone has the right to feel safe. I would love to see people have those conversations privately and respect debate instead of being outwardly hateful,” Riley said.
Riley encourages people to speak out and report. They emphasize that just talking among themselves will not result in any justice. Riley also encourages staff and faculty to be aware of how people are treated within the classroom and to be a good ally.
“DePauw will take it seriously. There are people here that will listen and take it seriously,” Riley said.
Students can reach out to DePauw Police directly at 765-658-5555 or fill out the form linked below to report bias on campus.
https://www.depauw.edu/studentaffairs/campus-safety/bias-incident-resources/reporting-bias/
Photo of the BIRT (Bias Incident Report Team) process. (Photo courtesy of DePauw University)