In the USA, fraternity culture is massive among university students. Young adults, mostly identifying themselves as men, would gather in a clubhouse, hold discussions, host parties, provide training for new members, or do philanthropic activities based on brotherhood. Members are also expected to maintain a high GPA throughout their membership. Surely, this perfect embodiment comes at a price. Set in its notorious harsh initiation phase, the culture of ultra-masculine entitlement arises as the frat house is filled by predominantly white, privileged men that try to pass on the legacy of toxic masculinity. Its exclusive and secretive nature makes frat houses, unbeknownst to the members, are becoming cult-like with full of illegal drugs, alcohol abuse, sexual harassment, petty crimes, or even murder.
In this episode of Idea Session, we invited Ardia Khairunnisa Setiawan from Business Development Division to discuss how this fraternity culture is prevalent even in Indonesia, with it being less institutionalized, and how it could impact how society sees crimes as a whole. Furthermore, we would see what we can do as bystanders to prevent this culture from growing in a society that still uses the word 'taboo' to tackle such issues.