Dear Mr. Green:

In light of Tuesday’s reaction regarding the events on the evening of September 7th, it is with a heavy heart that we must share our grievances with your decision to suspend several Greek chapters. We hold that the University's treatment to its student organizations has not been found equitable, and insist that the University has failed to provide any justification for its public targeting of the above organizations.  

Tuesday’s announcement set a troubling precedent—one that we have reason to believe won’t be levied against all future violations of local COVID-19 health directives, university policies, and the Cornhusker Commitment. In addition, as a public institution, the University ought to recognize the merits of due process, even if its own rules alleviate itself from the obligation. 

The six houses identified are among a group of chapters whose response to COVID-19 has been well within the expectations outlined in the Cornhusker Commitment and the broader expectations of student organizations. Examples of self-imposed measures include: reduced house capacity, virtual recruitment, strict contact tracing, socially-distanced cafeterias, bans on guests, and temperature checks. 

These measures are contrasted by much of what we’ve seen on campus already this year. Each day at the Union square, students gather tightly at tables where masks are often forgone. At the club fair, hundreds stood together, rendering proper sanitation or distancing impossible. Residence hall tenants have shown a varying degree of COVID-19 compliance without ramifications. We have even seen photos of you, Mr. Green, at a meeting without a mask and in similar violation of protocols. It is evident that without Greek organizations to target in these instances that the University has no intention of making public all violations. 

Moreover, for the University to so clearly and publicly vouch for a few of its students’ ability to play tackle football, it is curious to see the change in dialogue when the students involved are Greeks. We cannot in good faith believe that the University’s response to the events of September 7th was made with the same considerations in mind as their nationally-covered push to play a sport in which socially distancing is impossible. 

Given the above examples, we have no choice but to doubt the validity of the University’s commitment to a fair and equal treatment of its students and their respective organizations. Recalling the alleged violations of the Cornhusker Commitment, we would like to remind you of another commitment. You, Mr. Green, in 2017, said you wanted UNL to be “the best place in the country to be a Greek.” Sadly, we have been forced to interpret that statement as empty words disguised as an honest initiative. 

It is our sincere hope that the University will respond transparently and in the same fashion it would with any other organization. If not, it is clear that the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is committing itself to the erosion of Greek Life as we know it. 

Yours truly,

The Students of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Greek Life