Your son or daughter have left home and are adjusting to college life. Keeping them safe while on or off campus is a parent’s first concern.
Hazing incidents, binge drinking and sexual assaults heighten a parent’s normal concerns.
Alcohol is the number one culprit. 82% of college hazing deaths involve alcohol. Sexual assaults used to be swept under the rug and are still too often not taken seriously. Did you know that 62% of all sexual crimes on college campus are drug-related? 1/3 of adolescents, before they ever leave home, have engaged in binge drinking. Binge drinking brings with it traffic accidents, impulsive behavior and even suicide.
If your son or daughter pledges a fraternity or a sorority, talk with them about the dangers of hazing. Hazing has been prohibited on many campuses but hazing and binge drinking still happen. When a tragedy occurs in a sorority or frat house, or in a campus dorm, or for that matter, at a college or university’s sponsored event, parents ask where they can turn for help.
Here are some helpful suggestions:
- Talk about peer pressure – Dialogue that although peer pressure is often hard to resist, parents are the best resource to guide and to listen. Tell your son or daughter that you are just a phone call away.
- Say NO to Hazing – Most colleges have prohibited hazing due to unattended injury and even death. But hazing still remains a huge problem. Speak to your son or daughter and let them know that no fraternity or sorority is worth the humiliation and risk of injury from hazing. Hazing is hazardous to your health.
- Always Use the Buddy System – Don’t go out alone. Bring someone with you to a party. NEVER go back to your dorm or apartment with a stranger. Go out in groups. Friends are a safety net. Friends watch out for one another.
- Do NOT Binge Drink – Binge drinking is playing Russian roulette. How many grieving parents are there from the tragic passing of a son or daughter from alcohol poisoning or accident related death. Binge drinking can cause brain damage. Don’t roll the dice with multiple shots or excessive alcohol. For that matter, still talk about abstinence as difficult as this may be to achieve. Speak about the consequences of violating college alcohol prohibitions. This is much harder in practice because we all understand that many, if not most, of college students drink. Focus on excessive drinking. Hammer home never getting into a car with anyone who appears impaired from alcohol or drugs. Make sure there is a designated driver.
Fellows Hymowitz Rice does not want another case from a son or daughter injured or killed on or off campus. It wants to spread awareness of the risks that are out there. If an accident does happen, we are here to help. If someone, whether on or off campus, is injured because of someone else’s negligence, carelessness or recklessness call the experienced New York and New Jersey Injury Lawyers at Fellows Hymowitz Rice for help at (845) 639-9300.
You need an experienced litigation law firm fighting for you. We will investigate every detail of a possible claim at no cost to you.
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