Michael Deng's Asian Fraternity Hazing Death In The News—Sort Of
09/15/2015
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The December 2013, death of Michael Deng in a fraternity hazing ritual has resulted in criminal charges and some headlines on Twitter and in the news.

Most don't mention that the Baruch College Greek Fraternity that killed him, Pi Delta Psi (ΠΔΨ), is an Asian fraternity. (The names of frat brothers charged with the crime are Charles Lai, Kenny Kwan, Raymond Lam, Daniel Li, and Sheldon Wong.)

One exception is a black tweeter who says this:

That's not quite true—in February, 2014, I blogged about this case, and   wrote that while "Hazings in a black college fraternity are much like being “jumped in” to a gang",  Asians not only have less tendencies to violent crime, but higher IQs and more medical training, thus they're less likely to "kill someone by “accidentally” beating him to death. “Wait—that might cause cerebral edema, subdural hematoma, or contrecoup injuries!” is something are much more likely to hear at an Asian frat hazing than at black fraternity. (See Death And The “Glass Ceiling”—Asian Fraternity Hazing Ritual All About Racial Resentment and compare it with Boren Goes Berserk Over OU Frat N-Word, But What About Black Frats? They Kill People!)

While we're talking about stereotypes, the challenge that killed Michael Deng was more like something from a training montage in an Asian martial arts movie than simply being beaten up by a gang.

However Asians do share something with Non-Asian Minorities—racial resentment against whites. Here's the the hazing ritual that led, accidentally, to Michael Deng’s death:

“The game is called the Glass Ceiling, and it is played outside. It involves blindfolding a person and placing a heavy item on his back. He has to navigate to someone who is calling for him, and as he makes his way, others try to tackle him.”[ Baruch College Student Dies in Fraternity Pledge Ritual in Poconos, By Ariel Kaminer And Ashley Southall, December 11, 2013]

The  “Glass Ceiling” ritual is about resentment—the brother calling for him represents Asian racial solidarity and the “others who try to tackle him” represent …white people, and the society that’s supposed to provide “glass ceilings” for Asians.

In the meantime, any fraternity that pledges all white students will be investigated, but Asian and black fraternities are OK.

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