The AMS’ revisitation of the ban on their members joining fraternities is a step forward — one that doesn’t necessarily imply that fraternities will be welcomed back at Queen’s.

The ban, instituted in 1934, hasn’t been properly re-evaluated since its inception. Currently, the AMS is seeking legal advice and looking to receive student feedback on the ban.

It’s common sense that the ban should be looked at again to make sure that all relevant questions regarding fraternities are addressed.

It’s the decision of students, at the end of the day, to decide whether they’d like to see fraternities and sororities on their campus. However, questions should be raised about how fraternities would affect our campus.

Queen’s is lauded for its strong sense of community. Students often come here to take advantage of this, participating in many initiatives on top of going to class. Fraternities, with their air of exclusivity, could detract from this already existing sense of community.

While being a member of a club on campus is typically based on equal opportunity and merit, being a member of a fraternity can often be based on far more arbitrary qualities.

If AMS members were allowed to join fraternities, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Queen’s would turn into the stereotypical rowdy college campus.

Steps can be taken to make sure that the negative qualities many fraternities are associated with won’t manifest themselves.

If the ban were to be lifted, the AMS would ultimately have to help institute a series of concrete rules and sanctions that all would have to abide by.

The re-evaluation of the ban is the right step. However, students should consider the potential repercussions that a lift of this ban could lead to when giving their feedback. — Journal Editorial Board