Amid all the fun and festivity of Homecoming Week here at Mississippi State, a small incident took place in the side yard of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity house. A few of the fraternity’s members, and several of its pledges, employed their right to freedom of expression by heckling the float of the College Democrats and tossing small balls of aluminum foil in the general direction of the float.
Before the float had even reached the side of the house, several members of the fraternity specifically reminded the crowd in the yard that they could voice their opinions verbally but the throwing of objects was strictly out-of-bounds. The incident was undoubtedly one that was influenced by the “snowball effect;” as one person started heckling the float, others joined in, and before anything could be done the altercation had ended.
A clarification must be made between the right to freedom of expression and using good judgment. There is a significant difference in the right to freedom of expression and acting distastefully and disrespectfully. While we here at SAE wholeheartedly agree to one’s right to freedom of expression, we also believe in thinking of the rights and feelings of others before our own. Our actions Friday did not reflect that ideal.
On behalf of the entire SAE pledge class, I as president of the pledge class apologize to the men and women involved in the College Democrats organization. We acted in poor taste, and now the actions of a handful have cast a negative light on the fraternity as a whole. However, everyone involved with SAE knows the chapter has more character and class than that displayed on Friday afternoon.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon hopes that the College Democrats will recognize that the incident occurred in the misjudgment of a few and in no way reflects the entire fraternity. We don’t apologize for our political beliefs, but we do apologize for displaying behavior unbecoming of a true gentleman.
William Craig is a freshman in biological sciences.