On Oct. 14 and 15, two fraternity houses on the university campus were vandalized. Sigma Chi and Sigma Nu were the victims of this attack.
Sigma Chi discovered their vandalization early on Monday morning. Sigma Chi said the damage they have seen so far was primarily to their car, although there was also a substance found on their shed. All of the cars had mayonnaise, flour, and mustard all over them. While this is seemingly harmless, it can damage the paint because of mustard’s acidity.
An anonymous member of Sigma Chi said, “I got in my car, heading down the street to the first intersection, and I couldn’t stop. Once I pulled over, I saw I had honey poured into the brake pads. It seemed like a whole bottle because it was seeping out and covering all the tires and rims.” While flour on windshields and honey on breaks may not seem dangerous, affecting a car’s ability to break is very dangerous.
Another brother said “It’s very dangerous when you can’t break. That could be an attempt on our lives… I would like it if UWPD installed some cameras so this wouldn’t happen again.” The fraternity did make a police report to UWPD, but because of the lack of cameras on Frat Row, there was nothing they could do.
When asked their opinions on the events that happened, the brothers said, “It’s disappointing that people would do something like this without thinking it through all the way. We are fine with practical jokes, but going beyond, where ramifications exceed what the intent is, that where a line is crossed.” Greek life is largely involved with the University of Wyoming campus, making this a serious offense.
The Sigma Nu house was also a victim of validation. Sigma Nu recalls hearing honking outside of their house on Tuesday night, and then a car sped off. When they went outside to look at what happened, they noticed one of their cars had gotten keyed very deeply. Although the attack was recent, Sigma Nu thinks the damages will cost thousands of dollars.
Sigma Nu also notified UWPD. An anonymous member of Sigma Nu stated, “There’s not a whole lot they could do because there are no cameras up yet.” After the incident Sigma Nu did order and install cameras for their own house, to prevent this from happening again.
Two fraternities getting vandalized in two days is rare. “I think it definitely could’ve been people messing around. Although, I know there was an altercation behind some of the frat houses last week. I’m not sure if it’s stemming from that,” said a member of Sigma Nu. The details of said altercation were not clarified, nor who was involved.
This incident has taken a toll on the Greek Life Community. Sigma Nu members said, “I’m also very disappointed that this is happening to people in the row. I think the Greek community is very beneficial to the university. They do provide a lot of good, and it’s very disheartening to see members of our community attacked like that.”
Greek life is a pillar of the campus community and involves many students in their activities. A direct attack on two of the fraternities is harmful to the culture the University of Wyoming has created.
