Sunday, the Student Association Senate voted to revoke Phi Beta Sigma fraternity’s recognition for a four-week period because the fraternity posted an objectionable flyer, forged a University Programming & Activities approval stamp and failed to take the posters down within 24 hours of notification.

For four weeks, the fraternity’s Senate funding will be suspended and it also will lose privileges to post fliers, rent rooms in Holmes Student Center or use university printing services. UP&A has imposed its own one-month suspension of posting privileges.

The flyer featured a drawing of a man with no shirt and his pants unzipped, holding hands with a woman. It would not, in all likelihood, have been approved by UP&A for posting because of its blatantly sexist nature. The initiate in charge of the project avoided this problem by simply photocopying an approval stamp from another poster.

Phi Beta Sigma President John Richardson has said the older members of the fraternity didn’t know about the posters until “after the fact,” that he never was informed of the 24-hour removal policy, and that it would have been “no problem” to remove them.

There’s no question the fraternity violated Senate rules. The older members of the fraternity are responsible for the actions of their initiate—they should have checked on him to be sure correct procedures were followed. This is not a case of Phi Beta Sigma being picked on because it is a black fraternity. They are being treated the way any organization which violates Senate rules would be.

SA Minority Relations Adviser Larry Robertson is correct in saying the impact on the organization should be kept in mind in determining its punishment. Phi Beta Sigma is a valuable asset to black students and to the university community as a whole. Punishment for the violations should be reasonable.

Four weeks is not too long a time to lose SA recognition. There still will be half the semester left when the suspension is lifted—time enough for the fraternity to recover from any ill effects the incident might have on it.

However, because Phi Beta Sigma is an SA organization, the Senate is the appropriate body to determine their punishment. If the senators have determined that a one-month suspension of posting privileges is sufficient, then the fraternity should not be subject to further punishment by UP&A. UP&A should defer to the SA Senate on this point.