What do George Washington, John Wayne, Harry Houdini, F.D.R, and “Sugar Ray” Robinson all have in common? In addition to  being permanently sewn into the fabric of America’s history, each of these men were part of the Freemasons. The Freemasons are considered the world’s oldest and largest fraternal organization, but many conspiracies surround this group which many deem a “secret society.”

Here at Gustavus, a so called “secret society” has also gained much attention over the past two years.  This alleged organization, known as the Greys, is claimed to exist as an off-campus fraternity.

Yes, it is true that Freemasonry involves secret rituals, symbols, and even handshakes to distinguish true members from imposters.  In 1738, Pope Clement XII issued a decree stating that Catholics are forbidden from participating in Freemasonry under the threat of being excommunicated from the church; this rule still holds precedence today.  The secrecy of the group even initiated the creation of the first American third party, the Anti-Masonic Party.  But aside from the secret aspects already mentioned, the Freemasons, with a membership of approximately 1.3 million people, are fairly well known amongst the American public, and many historians do not even claim the Freemasons to be a secret society at all.

There are other notable groups that have been heralded as secret societies such as Shriners International, the Knights of Columbus, and the Skull and Bones of which presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush were members at Yale University.  Each of these groups is unique in its practices, beliefs, and initiatives, but all of them enforce some sort of secrecy in order to preserve the honor their traditions hold.

Here at Gustavus, a so called “secret society” has also gained much attention over the past two years.  This alleged organization, known as the Greys, is claimed to exist as an off-campus fraternity.  The Greys, otherwise known by the Greek letters Nu Upsilon Gamma, have been subject to multiple investigations by the College’s administration.  Most recently, a survey was sent out to the members of all Greek organizations affiliated with the college.  This survey included questions that asked for the identification of all members, officials, and any information that could help the college figure out just who and what the Greys are.

The intentions of those who are pursuing this information gathering have not been made very clear, but these informal researchers do not seem to be very sympathetic toward the alleged Greys.  In a large Greek life meeting at the beginning of the year, it is reported by numerous unnamed sources that a faculty member gave a lengthy speech warning the attending fraternities and sororities of associating with the group known as the Greys.  Some said threats were made to these organizations such as suspension of rush classes or even termination of any group known to hold social functions or any formal associations with Nu Upsilon Gamma.

As of now, you as a reader may be wondering what this organization is or whether it even exists. The Greys have a long history with the college, but this history has been muddled by different personal accounts and even more by lack of written record.  The dates of origin for this group are said to be either 1906 or 1910.  Nu Upsilon Gamma was said to have split off from the fraternity known as the Reds (Tau Psi Omega) in 1906 due to domination of political power on campus, effectively becoming a sort of “secret society”. These former Reds members distinguished themselves by wearing grey sweaters on campus, and a rivalry was created between these two groups, especially in athletics.  The first records of a formal constitution for the Greys dates back to 1910 and is kept in the archives on the top floor of the library.  In 1920, the Greys were formally renamed as a Greek organization on campus.

The intentions of those who are pursuing this information gathering have not been made very clear, but these informal researchers do not seem to be very sympathetic toward the alleged Greys.

Many may find this surprising, but aside from being an editor for The Gustavian Weekly, current Board of Trustees member Warren Beck ’67 was a member of the Greys Fraternity.  What is really quite funny about this situation is that the year both he and his wife dedicated Beck Academic Hall is the same year that the Greys were kicked off of campus. Now, rumors are circulating that the Greys have continued activity underground, so it seemed fitting to find out what students think about the supposed existence of this secret group.

Wandering the chattering halls and slush covered sidewalks of this campus, I set out to ask a variety of people just what they had heard about this mysterious fraternity; however, all of these sources requested to be kept anonymous for many reasons the main one being fear of formal reprimand by the College.  It only seemed appropriate to begin my search for commentary in Beck Hall.  As I left my class, I asked a seemingly fatigued member of a sorority about what she had heard about the Greys.  Her eyes opened and she spouted, “I don’t see what the big deal is. I’ve heard of them, and they don’t seem to be doing any harm to the campus.  Let them do their thing.”  She then trudged on feeling the drag that J-Term’s fun seems to bring to students in the morning.

Another member of Greek Life, this time a member of a fraternity, boldly stated in the Caf, “It’s childish how the school is pursuing this ‘witch hunt’. No one took that survey seriously.”  As I asked more and more people, I received a multitude of unique responses that mostly seemed to criticize actions taken by the school or were in support of the alleged organization.  Some seemed to joke around, saying things like, “The Greys don’t exist,” or, “Careful, Big Brother is watching,” with a quick snicker or smile following. And some students, mostly First-Years, genuinely had no idea what I was talking about.

Though overwhelming support and complacency about this group seemed to encompass most of the responses, there were a few comments that expressed concern.  One student outside of Greek Life said, “If any of these guys are really as bad as the school puts them out to be, then maybe something should be done.  On the other hand, I really haven’t heard of anything that I’m really opposed to, I’m pretty baffled by the whole situation.”  Another student adamantly stated that she was just opposed to the ideas of fraternities and sororities in general; however, I really did not seem to receive any responses that were particularily hostile toward this mysterious group.

“I don’t see what the big deal is. I’ve heard of them, and they don’t seem to be doing any harm to the campus.  Let them do their thing.”

So now some questions must be put forth.  With so much negative feedback from the student body about this “witch hunt,” why is this group being investigated? Are the Greys even real? From my perspective, it seems like being a part of this group is like being a part of any other group off of campus such as a club basketball team or a political organization. It doesn’t seem necessary for a school to investigate a club like this that doesn’t even use school funding and seems to have relatively strong support from the student body.  Granted, this was J-Term, so a large portion of the student body was not here.  It seems that another essay will just have to be done during spring semester. Thanks for reading, and please recycle this when you’re done.  Vale!

-Sean Kehren