CW: sexual assault, rape.

On the @shadesofcalpoly Instagram, there are several submissions of students reporting sexual assault and/or rape by members of Cal Poly's chapter of Theta Chi. However, when tagged in a post, Theta Chi removes their tags, deletes any comments on their page regarding this, and completely ignores these injustices by refusing to even acknowledge what is being shared.

According to Cal Poly's InterFraternity Council page, (https://greeklife.calpoly.edu/IFC/Overview one of their council initiatives is "Sexual Assault Education & Prevention", but the testimonies on @shadesofcalpoly combined with their actively ignorant actions make it clear that Theta Chi is failing at this.

Theta Chi has proven that they do not care about the harm that their members are causing and they have chosen to ignore the allegations against them. They have caused great harm to Cal Poly and the San Luis Obispo community and have made many people feel unsafe because of their actions. Clearly, they do not uphold any of the values that Greek Life at Cal Poly claims to uphold and because they refuse to even ADDRESS these incidents, they should be disbanded at Cal Poly.

Those who have experienced sexual assault from a member of Theta Chi deserve justice and while this should not be the only action taken, this is a great place to start. 

DISBAND CAL POLY'S CHAPTER OF THETA CHI.

Theta Chi National Email: ihq@thetachi.org
Cal Poly Greek Life Complaint Form: https://greeklife.calpoly.edu/complaint-form

COPY AND PASTE THE FOLLOWING TO SEND AN EMAIL: ihq@thetachi.org, judicial@calpolyifc.com, president@calpolyifc.com, presidentsoffice@calpoly.edu

Subject: Disaffiliate Cal Poly SLO's Theta Chi Chapter

To whom it may concern:

As you may be aware, @shadesofcalpoly is an Instagram account that has become a space for Cal Poly students/alum to safely share their experiences of discrimination and assault. Through this account, Cal Poly SLO's Theta Chi has had several allegations of rape and sexual assault coming to light (links here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CCILGtVJ3JB/?igshid=zth3yw4nlwj2 https://www.instagram.com/p/CCEmFwjJcN0/?igshid=akr9t81uity9 .) Based on two of these posts, the chapter was not only aware of these sexual assault claims against specific members some time ago, but agreed these allegations were "not surprising." Even so, the fraternity still allowed the assaulters to remain in the fraternity. Such actions are incredibly scarring to the victims of these crimes, and should be seen as a deep stain on Theta Chi, the Interfraternity Council, and Cal Poly as a whole.

Additionally, not only did the fraternity delete comments and tags on these posts, but then proceeded to send a deeply tone deaf statement. This statement did not acknowledge any claims, instead blaming victims of assault and saying they would "continue to engage, educate, and act to prevent sexual assault" (https://www.instagram.com/p/CCKZZybDeO5/?igshid=zewstcwuml0s This statement insinuates no change in their policies or practices, even though it is these same policies and practices that allowed these sexual assaults and cover-ups to occur in the first place. "Education" on sexual assault prevention is a great first step, but it cannot be the only step. Ignoring steps taken after legitimate claims of assault and rape just emphasizes their dangerous lack of accountability.

Under Cal Poly Fraternity & Sorority Life's "Pillars of Excellence," pillar 4 "Safety & Risk Management" requires "zero tolerance for...sexual assault, violence" (https://greeklife.calpoly.edu/fsl-office-overview Theta Chi's national creed describes the fraternity as "an advancer of culture and a builder of character." If these were truly implemented by the fraternity, the men accused of sexual assault and rape would no longer be a part of the fraternity. Cal Poly Theta Chi would take initiative and actually create an unbiased means of assessing sexual assault in their fraternity. However, they refuse to do so.

More and more people are agreeing with us by the minute. The petition "Disband Cal Poly SLO's Theta Chi on change.org (http://chng.it/4GMqrsgpLJ has garnered over 200 signatures in less than 24 hours. The numbers continue to grow.

It is clear that Cal Poly SLO's chapter of Theta Chi is a danger to those who attend their events. Additionally, it is even more clear that the chapter refuses to acknowledge this problem nor take reasonable actions to address it. But Cal Poly's standards demand it. Theta Chi's ideals demand it. Society demands it. For this reason, we demand that you disaffiliate the Cal Poly SLO Theta Chi chapter.

Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]