CSUN Official Suspends Fraternity Over Racism Issue : Education: The group could be reinstated after a flyer considered degrading to Latinos is investigated.

Cal State Northridge Vice President Ronald Kopita on Thursday severed all campus ties with a fraternity chapter that distributed party invitations that school officials and Latino students called racist.

But Kopita left open the possibility that the CSUN chapter of Zeta Beta Tau could be reinstated after an investigation and report by a student government committee and the school’s Interfraternity Council.

“This is not an issue of guilt or innocence, because ZBT admits wrongdoing,” Kopita said. “My action is to respond to an admission of guilt and to impress on the campus community that such behavior will not be tolerated.”

The suspension followed a day of protests Wednesday by Latino students angered by invitations for a Mexican-theme party held by the fraternity.

The invitations referred to a fictitious “Lupe,” who campus officials said is a character described as a Mexican whore in a vulgar and obscene song, the lyrics of which were included in songbooks distributed by a UCLA fraternity, Theta Xi.

UCLA officials earlier this year suspended Theta Xi on the ground that the songbook was offensive to women and ethnic minorities.

Zeta Beta Tau officers had refused a request by school officials to cancel the party, arguing that they had a right to “be in solidarity with Theta Xi at UCLA,” according to campus records of an Oct. 9 meeting between fraternity officers and Thomas Piernik, director of campus activities.

But ZBT officers in interviews on Wednesday denied that the party had anything to do with Theta Xi, and blamed the incident on a single member they said was responsible for the party flyer. However, they said they were willing to apologize and accept punishment.

School officials said members of ZBT in 1990 filed a complaint against another fraternity for a prank offensive to Jewish students. The ZBT fraternity was established by Jewish men who had been refused membership in other fraternities because of ethnic discrimination and is still predominantly Jewish.

David Wagner, president of Zeta Beta Tau, refused to comment Thursday after a closed-door meeting with Kopita.

Kopita, who has the final say on the status of the 61-member fraternity, said students also ought to pass judgment on the incident. The Associated Students Constitutional Affairs board will conduct a hearing on the matter next week.

Kopita set a Nov. 13 deadline to make a final decision on the length of the fraternity’s suspension, which revokes the fraternity’s rights as a campus organization. The university cannot prevent the members from continuing to live together in a private home they rent as a fraternity house.

“I hope this review will illuminate ZBT’s motivation, whether their action was one of malice, ignorance or a procedural error,” said Kopita, who recently transferred to CSUN from the Minnesota State University system.

The school’s Student Senate voted Tuesday to revoke Zeta Beta Tau’s charter after hearing complaints from Latino students.

But the action drew some criticism because the fraternity was not formally notified and was not given time to prepare a defense.

“There are some students who are upset at ZBT but still believe in their right of due process,” Associated Students President Sal Damji said.