​By: Lane Lytle & Tessa Davidsohn

​Frat Parties, Sorority Functions, and College Sports; events that scream excitement and traditionally involve student consumption of alcohol and other substances. With the rise of punitive measures in the courts for underage substance abuse, the rise of rehab clinics, and “just say no” initiatives in schools,one would expect a decrease in substance abuse among teens and young adults; the opposite has taken place. The need to seepreventive care, emphasized among my peers, is needed now more than ever. I speak as one who has had friends suffer due to crippling substance use and addiction. 

​As a junior at an undergraduate institution, I have seen substance use and abuse in many different capacities. Parties, sports events, and even weekend hangouts at a friend’s apartment always seem to contain an element of substance use, the most notable of which is alcohol. While I don’t condemn the consumption of alcohol in the correct setting (being 21 years of age and above), the abuse of alcohol as a means of coping with unresolved or built-up trauma should be spoken against. This dependency is something claiming the futures of many of my peers every year, “more than 1,800 students die each year of alcohol-related causes…600,000 are injured while drunk, and nearly 100,000 become victims of alcohol-influenced sexual assaults” (Mcmurtrie). The reality of substance dependency is grave; young lives are at stake in the face of substance culture, or “binge drinking culture”. This culture is most prevalentamong Greek organizations on college campuses. As a fraternity man, I can confirm that drinking culture is a real and present institution in every Greek organization I’ve come into contact with, across a variety of undergraduate institutions. The reality behind these drinking cultures is a multi-faceted loyalty to Greek rituals (those imbued with alcohol related activities) and practices of Hazing. Hazing is the most common vehicle for substance abuse to form or spread. Hazing is defined by the Britannica Dictionary as “the practice of playing unpleasant tricks on someone or forcing someone to do unpleasant things” (Britannica Dictionary). Understanding Hazing as a power dynamic of one individual over another reveals the reality of substance use when it is used in this power dynamic setting. The culture is put upon others; the drinking and use of other substances as a means of coping is learned, not inherited. This can start at any age, a friend who wishes to remain anonymous speaks to this fact. My friend, a Texan girl who goes to college in SC began drinking as young as 14 years old. This was normal in her house, describing it as the “family culture”. This “culture”, the more she described it, became more and moresorrowful. She described her family as upper middle class, she never had a moment of want or desperation; where most substance use and addiction is thought to creep in to families living in desperate situations. The access granted by the family’s wealth and abundance gave my friend a license to try what she willed, when she willed it, and without any pushback. This was described to by her as her life at home and school. Her friends would vape, drink, and use other substances in school bathrooms when teachers would pass by. This unrestricted living did not spare her life from lasting trauma, and neither did it spare her family. She vividly described to me her cousin, who lived as she did in the family, but became extremely “dependent” on drugs and alcohol, going as far as to prostitute himself for money topurchase substances. They have lost contact with this cousin, drugs have consumed his mind and body, a path he decided to walk as early as middle school. My friend described the cousin as a bright boy before he began using, before he began what seemed like an innocent game of smoking some weed. My friend further described to me her college life, her time in a sorority. Every function, every hangout, no matter how simple or “low-key”, alcohol and weed had to be present. This sorority’s“culture” of substance use fostered addictions in many of her friends and cost many of them very dearly. My friend declined to share details of the tragedy of her substance use in high school and college, she did, however, confirm that she had been sexually assaulted due to substance use. A tragedy that can strike any family, any home, and any person self-medicating rather than self-regulating. Prevention before these behaviors take root is essential, as destructive coping methods must be met with healthy regulating methods. Sobering Academia can only begin when we call attention to the problem among my peers. We are perpetually exchanging bad coping methods in an echo chamber of self-medication when we should seek preventative measures of self-regulation. My friend describes her life as a race; she was told to grow up fast, and substances were a means to do this. She said at first it was cool, now everything is just cold. 

Resources: 

“Hazing Definition & Meaning | Britannica Dictionary.” @Britannica, 2024, www.britannica.com/dictionary/hazing.

Juergens, Jeffrey. “Drinking and Drug Abuse in Greek Life – Addiction Center.” AddictionCenter, 2014, www.addictioncenter.com/college/drinking-drug-abuse-greek-life/.

Mcmurtrie, Beth. “Why Colleges Haven’t Stopped Binge Drinking.” Nytimes.com, The New York Times, 14 Dec. 2014, www.nytimes.com/2014/12/15/us/why-colleges-havent-stopped-binge-drinking.html?smid=url-share. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.

Welsh, Justine W., et al. “Substance Use among College Students.” FOCUS, vol. 17, no. 2, 10 Apr. 2019, pp. 117–127, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6527004/, https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20180037.