Sorry for double posting, but I agree. You shouldn't be wearing letters at all. Any person can get a bid from a fraternity, leave permanently or go "inactive", but that doesn't mean they can wear letters because they are not "actively" apart of that fraternity anymore.

Actually, it sounds like he has told them he does want to be apart from the fraternity, or at least they understood it that way.

OP, something doesn't sound right here. What is your status as far as your national organization is concerned?

"Deactivated" means that as far as the fraternity is concerned, you are an un-person. It's like disowning your parents. You are saying you never want anything to do with the fraternity ever again. So NO, you should NOT be wearing letters. You shouldn't even have them in your possession.

If this isn't what you did - i.e., if you went through PROPER CHANNELS (that would be your fraternity's exec board and national office) to take TEMPORARY ALUM STATUS or a LEAVE OF ABSENCE that is OFFICIALLY SANCTIONED, then yeah, the brothers are being dicks. But I kind of really don't think that's the case. I think you saw other guys doing that, but decided to be lazy and just say on your own "I'm not active right now." Greek organizations don't work that way.

With my chapter, if you ever go 'inactive,' you lose your letters. Why should someone who disaffiliated from the Fraternity be allowed to still wear letters around? What even guarantees that you're going to come back? Absolutely nothing.

You're lucky that they just ask you not to wear them. My chapter confiscates them.

ETA: 33girl, not every org has some type of temp alum status or some sort of leave of absence. I'm thinking grades were terrible and he was asked to leave for a semester or he was going to eventually phase out and deactivate soon anyway.

Oh yeah, I know that. I was just throwing him a plausability bone.

Protesting for no reason :rolleyes:

OP - If you no longer wanted to be a member, why would you want to wear letters? No one is going to shun you for taking a break to get your grades up, so you're probably lying about that. Focus on your education and not on proving a point by wearing a shirt.