Florida A&M drum major Robert Champion was beaten and killed in a band hazing ritual aboard a team bus in November. The family has acknowledged he was gay, and some students claim the excessive beating was because Champion was gay. According to CNN:
One band member, who spoke on condition of anonymity, previously explained that students "walk from the front of the bus to the back of the bus backward while the bus is full of other band members, and you get beaten until you get to the back."
Florida A&M drum major Robert Champion was beaten and killed in a band hazing ritual aboard a team bus in November. The family has acknowledged he was gay, and some students claim the excessive beating was because Champion was gay. According to CNN:
One band member, who spoke on condition of anonymity, previously explained that students "walk from the front of the bus to the back of the bus backward while the bus is full of other band members, and you get beaten until you get to the back."
Given that description, it’s easy to imagine how some students might be more harsh on particular band members. Champion suffered bruises and internal bleeding, which ultimately led to his death.
There is never an appropriate time or place for hazing. All hazing ultimately leads to this place for some people. I'm sure dozens if not hundreds of students had partaken in this ritual and survived; Losing one life to it is too many.
The family is suing the tour bus line that operated the bus where the beating occurred. I'm not sure they'll get very far with that one, but they have said they also plan to sue the school. Hopefully the legal system will teach the school and the people who hazed Champion a lesson they'll never forget.
