Bill Maher calls for abolition of fraternities over Cornell allegations

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 12 Oct, 12:30 · Archive

TV host Bill Maher has called for all fraternities to be abolished following gang rape allegations against seven Cornell University students.

Bill Maher called for the abolition of all fraternities on his show Real Time on Friday, in response to ongoing allegations against seven Cornell University students. A student identified as Jane Doe filed a civil lawsuit in September 2026 alleging that she was raped by seven members of the Cornell Chi Phi fraternity in 2024, when she was twenty years old. She says she was given marijuana, ketamine and alcohol.

Maher, who graduated from Cornell in 1978, said that male-only spaces 'just doesn't function without depravity', comparing them to the Catholic Church and the Taliban. He argued that fraternities worsen negative male behaviour including drinking, cruelty, the treatment of women, tribalism, peer pressure and bullying.

The seven accused students—Umar Matthew Ingalls, Jonathan Newell, Winston Lee, Gillio Lopes, Diego Sarabia, Scott Norris and Scott Kretzschmar—deny the allegations and have not been charged with any crimes. Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten previously said that Jane Doe's 2024 statement to police did not allege drugging or gang rape, but rather suggested drug use and sexual conduct were consensual. Following the September 2026 lawsuit, New York Governor Kathy Hochul appointed Attorney General Letitia James as an independent special prosecutor in the case.

How it is being reported

• Bill Maher Calls for abolition of frats amid Cornell 7 saga‘Any place that’s all male, no girls allowed, just doesn’t function without depravity,’ Maher saidIndependent World · 12 Oct, 12:14
• Bill Maher stuns audience as he calls for all frats to be abolished in wake of Cornell 7 allegations: 'Can't function without depravity'Bill Maher suggested that all fraternities should close amid the ongoing Cornell 7 investigation at the Ivy League school. The alum's comment was met with both shock and applause.Daily Mail · 11 Oct, 16:32

In this story: Bill Maher · Cornell University · Chi Phi · Jane Doe · Kathy Hochul · Letitia James · New York

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