In the last few weeks the creation of an underage drinking task force in Troy has had a significant impact on the lives of many students. Students have been arrested and harassed under the guise of law enforcement. In response to recent activities on campus and the comments of local officials, I have prepared an examination of the topic.

First, is underage drinking at RPI an epidemic? This was cited as a principle reason for the task force by the Assistant District Attorney for Troy, Andrew Martin. I have been presented with no facts to support this rationale, and I don’t believe it. I feel that this is merely an excuse to look tough on crime in an election year. I would also like to point out that underage drinking is far less a problem at RPI than at most every other campus I have been to. The greek system at RPI is demonstrably different in its self regulation and control over alcohol consumption. I will in no way say that underage drinking does not occur, but it is not growing at an epidemic rate.

Second, are fraternities targeted? Andrew Martin wanted to make it clear at a forum held two weeks ago that they are not targeting fraternities, but in practice this is not true. Two weekends ago I attended a party at Phi Kappa Theta which was raided by the police. They may claim not to be targeting fraternities, but coupling that with the raiding of Pi Kappa Alpha and arrest of their president, it doesn’t seem that way. We have become apparent targets for underage drinking because we are visible groups. When I asked the police officer what defined probable cause for them to enter the home, he stated it was the gathering of individuals in a community defined with a large underage population. Whether or not that meets the legal standards is debatable, but it makes it obvious. If you have a fraternity party, the police will bust into your party and harass your guests.

After raiding the party and not finding anyone drinking underage, the police were apparently dissatisfied and set up checkpoints to give breathalyzer tests to people leaving on foot and started checking seatbelts on cars leaving. That is completely ridiculous.

A third point I would like to make challenges the legality of the practices of the Troy Police Department. In order to do so we should first examine how probable cause is defined. Probable cause is defined as a reasonable belief that a person has committed a crime. For the most recent situation cited, the standards for probable cause may not have been met. Does a gathering of students support probable cause that the crime of underage drinking is occurring inside? Or does it attempt to legalize the harassment of students? Is that not an invasion of your privacy? You decide.

Fourth, does the school administration allow this to happen? RPI is not only one of the largest employers in the community but also is one of its largest economic supporters. Truthfully, without RPI, the City of Troy would be in significantly worse shape than it already is. That is a very simple observation to make. I feel that the administration needs to support students against this harassment that has been initiated by the Troy police. It is also not an unreasonable assumption that the administration knows that the Troy police are going to target and arrest students and feels comfortable letting it happen. I feel that Troy police would not enter a fraternity house unless they had the blessing of RPI, as evident by Public Safety officers assisting in the raid at Phi Kappa Theta two weekends ago.

Lastly, if you are as angry about this harassment as I am, you must be asking yourself, how can we fight it? No other group would stand for this treatment. The only reason they allow this to happen is that they feel that most college students cannot organize themselves against this force. They may very well be correct. One of the best actions we can take will be to put pressure on the school administration as they will be our best bargaining power. We can also vote against the present district attorney. We need to make this issue of harassment well known. We cannot simply stand by and allow our personal freedoms to be trampled on. There are many methods available, but first we must create a sincere uproar.

Jason Virgil

Theta Xi Fraternity