smiley--

As everyone else said, if you want to join an NPC/NPHS or whatever sorority, you should go for it. Research the options available at your school and decide what's best for you. At my school, we had 3 NPHC sororities, and when 2 african american women went through NPC rush, a lot of their african american friends called them sell outs. Needless to say, they are MY sisters today, and they are 2 of the most wonderful women in our chapter. You open your heart and see what it's about and you'll have a great experience as well.

Go to recruitment, talk to the ladies there, get to know them as much as you can. Bring up your concerns. You will know with the group just as you do with individuals who wants to get to know you earnestly. The women on this board give good advice (esp Dov Gal and white Chocolate).
Base your judgement on the women in those chapters because that it really what matters.
-M

Smiley what do you know about predominantly Black soroities? Have you researched them and you know what they stand for? From my understanding Eleanor Roosevelt the former first lady (a white woman) was a Alpha Kappa Alpha.

What you need to do is question why you want to be a part of a sorority. If you know that this then you wouldn't exen be asking this question and be in this dilema.

We have a couple African American girls in our chapter. I believe we are the only NPC sorority on our campus that does... But I totally adore them. They fit in so well. I'm so glad they weren't afraid to join us!

WHA? She just doesn't necessarily want to rush a NPHC sorority just because she's black. She wants to check out other options instead of just joining an organization because she feels obligated by her race.

While researching an organization overall can be helpful, smiley needs to figure out what group of girls on her campus she fits in best with. I'm an Alpha Phi and proud of it, but if I had gone to my second choice school I probably would not have gotten a bid from A Phi because they're a different group of girls there and I don't think I would have fit in with them.

For the record, NPHC's are NOT ONLY for African Americans. We have NEVER been.:cool:

dionysus, i think you know better. you are not fooling anyone

Ninja Poodle I was just going back to what Smiley said that NPHC are exclusively for one race, I was just trying to point out that NPHC include all races. But I do see where you are coming from by the way I worded my anwser.

Something to Think About...
 

I went to a large, (supposedly) diverse university with lots of sorority options. While the majority of NPC women were caucasian, there were a fair amount of women of color in some of the houses. My campus in California was a little more open to this. Although I considered going through NPC rush, I decided against it. One question that went through my mind was this: Can I live with joining an organization that would give me a bid in California, but would cut me right away if I were in the state of ______ ? How could I happily be an XYZ in California, knowing that a woman just like me somewhere else wasn't even given the opportunity to show her qualities?

I've seen several threads on this board with postings from NPC women who are appalled at the discriminatory practices of their XYZ chapter in another state, so I know it does happen, even in 2003. I also realize that some people might call ethnic based or focused GLOs exclusionary as well. I am just speaking to my personal situation, and I felt that by joining a Latina sorority, I knew that I wouldn't be denied membership due to my skin color, and if I didn't "make it", it would be due to some other reason.

I am in no way saying that all NPC sororities engage in discrimination, and many are truly diverse. But when someone asks whether she should go NPC or NPHC and some else responds "depends on where you go to school"...well, in my mind, this is problematic.

Another something to think about
 

I think this just shows one thing: The only people who should speak for their respective conferences are members of the respective conference/organization, whether NPHC, NPC, NIC, NALFO or another.

That's how misunderstandings, IMO, really start on this board.

Smiley, like everyone else, I think you should do what's best for you. However, if you are interested in being in an organization that is not on your campus, you could try to contact them and find out the process for starting a new chapter. That's another option. Just don't "settle".

Make sure you find an organization you love (NPC/NALFO/NPHC/etc.) and want to represent for a lifetime and take it from there.

Good luck!!

a thinking point
 

This is for ANYONE thinking about pledging. Piggy-backing off this statement and echoing some of what has been said, don't get caught up in the small picture of the chapter. You're going to be in that CHAPTER for only 2-4 years. You're going to be a member of that ORGANIZATION for the rest of your LIFE.

Re: Something to Think About...
 

Hell, even without the racial question, I KNOW there are chapters of my sorority that wouldn't have given me a bid, and women in other chapters I might not have chosen for sisters. That used to kind of bother me, but how big of a thing would "sisterhood" be to brag about if we were all the same? Getting along with people who share all your views and have similar personalities and backgrounds is easy. It's when you meet someone that you never in a zillion years thought you would even talk to and can find something in common with that you know how strong that sisterhood is.

AstroPhi, give my Brothers of LXA at Fl.Tech a big high for me!!!!!!!:) I was there for their 30 th Founders Day and what a hell of a gr4at bunch of Brothers! I am now an Honoray Memeber of The B N Chapter!:)

Smiley, I think you could never find a site to get better responses and insight than this!

All I can say, is check all of the Soroitys out!

I dont care what they are, you will find the fit that makes everyone feel good! But please join one as it will be one of the greatest times of your life! You will learn not only books, but how to organize, interact, donate, and manage!

Please let us know how everything comes out. Beleive me, We are all interested as we are a very big Family!:cool:

It does seem worth pointing out that one of Alpha Chi Omega's distinguished alumnae was the subject of a cover profile in Newsweek last week: Condoleezza Rice.

Good luck, smiley21. Keep an open mind and go with your instinct, and I bet it will all work out!

thank you guys for all of your help. i dont remember who said it, but it was pointed out that if i knew the real reason to join a sorority then i wouldnt have asked this question. i dont think that is a fair judgement. i just didnt like the idea of having the pressure or just being expected to join a predomiantly black sorority. i just wanted to know how i would be accepted in the npc sororities. everyone that is in a black or a multiracial sorority, please dont be offended. personal reasons why i am thinking like this i will keep to myself. but dont think that i am predjuiced or something.

Good luck with rush :)

Hey... What is the real reason to join a sorority? Sisterhood, right? Go where you fit in.

i must say that is true

zeta phi beta and sigma gamma rho were the first ones that i saw with non-black members. the rest have followed suit.


one band. . .one sound. ..

[AXO Alum in her best singing voice holding a candle at the front door...]

"Sisterhood and Charity....Friendship and Sincerity....these are the things that make Alpha Chi...."

Like the others have said, we have all kinds because it takes all kinds. We have red and yellow black and white....you get the point I assume :) We have a few "legacies" from other groups (both NPC and NPHC) groups in our sisterhood because they wanted to go where they felt they belonged, and they found us for their home. It is a choice that only YOU can make. I will say this - if you are made to feel uncomfortable at a house during recruitment or other introduction type event because of the color of your skin, then you will know that there is a BETTER place for you outside of those four walls.

{Quick shout-out to NinjaPoodle....haven't talked to you in FOREVER, but still love your name :D}

AXO ALUM .... stressing the ALUM part for the misinformed....

Exactly! There has been some great advice Smiley given to you. Research both the NPC and NPHC chapters and their national organizations, and see which you might fit best. Go through rush because you'll never know unless you try.
I went to my sorority's info night with the pre-conceived notion that I would never be a part of it because I assumed that sororities were all full of blond, leggy, skinny, tall girls. My sorority and chapter is not like that at all. My chapter has girls of all shapes, sizes, and ethinic backgrounds, and I am so glad that I went because I would never have found the wonderful sisters I have today. So check everyone out and find the group that's right for you. Good luck!

I highly agree with what AXOAlum has wrote here! The sisters at each house - regardless if it is NPC, NPHC, or whatever, should want you for YOU and you should feel the same about them! :)

One of my best friends is black, and when we were going through rush she didnt even really consider the black sororities on campus. She joined a house where there is I believe one other black girl-but she loves it. Just choose a house based on the people in it and you will be happy! Don't worry!!!!!

(drop)
 

I just wanted to say thanks to all the black women who popped in to give their opinions on being part of NPC orgs for smiley. It's not always obvious who is what in who, and I think it's cool that you all are speaking up for her. I just feel it's a perspective that is good for her (as well as myself) to hear...I have wondered if I was on a campus with nationals, which way I would have gone...I always said it depends on the campus and the chapters, but I never really considered what was said earlier about not being accepted by another chapter of the same letters. As today is still a racially tense time...ahhh... someday
that's all!
greek love!

ps- it is kind of painful to hear/read posts that say "well, there are orgs on my campus that have a few minorities", or "i have a black sister, or two and I love THEM, THEY..."...it's appreciated info, but at the same time it's kind of shallow...one or two out of how many??? And why are they THEY... but, and I deeply stress: ITS GOT TO START SOMEWHERE (integration that is) and I am truly glad to hear it is some places!!! It'll be nice when it's all about an org and not THEM rushing US, or WE don't look at THEM any particular way

that is a good point. i am not looking for sororities to brag or whatever saying hey 'i have a black sister' or 'hey we have multiracial people'. that is not what i want. i just want to be comfortable.

yeah, you don't want them to brag. . .

HOWEVER, you don't want to lose your uniqueness either.

example:
one day, two of my sisters were decorating our door and they were doing the 'some create trends, others create legends' and they did different actresses that are legends like marilyn, lucille ball, judy garland, etc. i came down and was looking at the door and there's wasn't one single black or minority on it. and when i questioned why they didn't do one. . .they made the statement that they didn't know any besides, they didn't look at me'like that'. and i was like, 'hello, i'm black. there's nothing that can take that away from me. that's what makes me unique. yeah, i have a white boyfriend. yeah, i'm in an all-white sorority. but i'm still black and i always will be.'



later they said that they were so upset because they didn't think of me as an individual but as one of them(which kind of made me feel good but still, i'm not white and i can't pretend that i am). however, i wanted them to appreciate the black actresses and singers as well.


sometimes, you just have to remind them.




'We ain't going nowhere. . .we can't be stopped now. . .we're Phi Sigs for life. . .'

AlphaXiDiva, I think a lot of the reason why some of our chapters don't have more women of different races is because minorities sometimes don't go to college. It's unfortunate because sometimes they aren't given the same opportunities as caucasians. I'm from the suburbs of Chicago, and most of the kids around here go to college. Unfortunately when you travel into the city, most of the schools are full of poor black kids who can't afford tuition to a university, or their teachers have unfortunately taught them not to count on anything. The lucky ones get athletic scholarships because a lot of the Chicago schools have extremely strong basketball programs. It just plain sucks and those kids never break the cycle.

At my school, we have a very strong international population (25%), but when I think about it, not too many kids from the States are minorities at my school. Most of the ones that are are from the area and are on sports scholarships. Most of the international students join Caribbean Students Association instead of joining a fraternity and a sorority. My sorority teamed up with the CSA girls for a flag football team this fall, and those girls rocked. I'm hoping that they'll think about rushing because we all had a lot of fun and maybe it would break those stereotypes. I don't think of them as black girls, I think of them as awesome chicks who I'd like to hang out with more. One of them might be joining the soccer team and I'm excited that we'll get to play together.

I hope that we haven't struck you as shallow AlphaXiDiva. I don't even think of the girls in my chapter who are "minorities" as that. Leslie from Honduras is just a wacky girl who cracks me up all the time, and Annie from Pakistan is just a bubbly girl who likes to talk a lot. Only when I was trying to show smiley how diverse chapters can be did their nationalities come out. I think most of the other girls on here think of their sisters as the same way: not as "the black girl in my sorority" but as "Diana, my sister who likes to go with me to pick up guys", etc.

I hope that we haven't given anyone that impression. I don't want anyone to think I took my sisters simply because we wanted to say we were good people and take girls from different ethnic backgrounds. We took those girls because they kick ass and because we knew they'd make great Alpha Phis.

Thanks
 

AlphaXiDiva: Thanks for mentioning this. This bothers me, too. By the way, one of my best friends went to Redlands and loved it! A great school!

Someone on this thread also mentioned "minorities who are brave enough to go through rush"...I don't think it's a matter of bravery (well, maybe it is in some places), but a matter of choice. Just because many of us chose not to go NPC doesn't mean we lacked courage...we just preferred other options.

hmmmm...
 

Are you saying that "non-minorities" ALWAYS go to college? :confused:

Another question: So then, how do you explain a campus like the one I went to, with the majority of students being non-caucasian (because minorities sometimes DO go to college), but yet, some of the IFC/NPC houses on campus did not have more than 1-2 "minority" students out of 100+ active members? I don't think it was for lack of "minority" students on campus, or even lack of "minority" students in the rush process...because some houses were VERY diverse.

(I put the word minority in quotes because in some places, people of color are the majority.)

What the.....
 

What the H$LL?????? This statement is so narrow-minded, bigoted and idiotic I don't know where to begin!!!!!! I think that since you EXPECT to see poor Black kids not doing well, that is all you can see. OPEN YOUR EYES!!!! There are plenty of Black kids in the Chicago area and beyond that actually attend college, and not all of them are on athletic scholarships!!!! I attended Texas A&M on TWO ACADEMIC scholarships!!! And I'm Black!!! And I have no athletic ability what-so-ever. Have you even heard of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that are majority Black!!! There is one in Texas, Prarie View A&M, an HBCU, that actually offers minority scholarships to white people since they would be the minority of the University population!!!!!!

whoa people. chill. my whole reasoning behind this wasnt to get everyone all against each other over races.
and to say something like 'minorities dont always have college opportunities' or 'poor black kids.....' is so tired. no matter what race you are, you can do anything you put your mind to and have your heart in. this whole discussion has gotten way out of hand. its getting off of the subject. these statements are getting to be uncalled for. i have already been considering not joining a sorority all together. to me, this discussion board is a reflection of sorority and fraternity life. i dont need all this drama. i think my life would be easier without it.

Don't be discouraged
 

Smiley:

Don't be discouraged from joining a sorority by what you see on a message board. As you will see on GC, someone will post an original question that gets people talking about other related topics, and yes, it sometimes gets off the original subject. I personally just had a few questions on some particular comments that did not "add up" to me.

Don't be disuaded from searching for a sisterhood that is right for you. The good thing (and the challenging thing) is that you have so many options. Good luck!

There's a guy in my fraternity who was born and raised in Compton, and was a gang member. Now he has a 4.0 and is pre - med. And he does not have any type of scholarship.

If you look hard enough for the opportunity, it will be there and you'll find it.

Smiley,
Race is one of the hot-button topics on GC, as it is in life. That's why it's very important to do a search because questions such as you've posted have already been addressed many times. And you can see that sometimes, stuff gets rather tetchy around here.
:)

smiley,

Please don't let anything discourage you if being Greek is something you want...I apologize on behalf of the board for a discussion that is supposed to be about you and your options turning into a discussion about race.

I missed this discussion...
 

I guess I'll just say that all you can do is find an organization you like, one you feel best suites your short and long-term goals and go for it. If you like the principles, the ideals, the women of the sorority, then the onus is on you to apply for membership. I didn't join Zeta Phi Beta because it was a "black sorority" nor because I felt that I would be accepted by Zeta (or AKA, DST, SGRho) and not by Phi Sigma Sigma (or Alpha Phi or AGD-- the NPC groups on my campus)--I could have been "rejected" by any or none of those groups. I joined Zeta because it was the very best sorority for me in keeping with why I was looking to join a sorority. The same could be said about NPC groups. If you find something you like about XYZ, then do those things necessary to join, and forget about whether you will be accepted as a black person--if you are not accepted and it seems to be because of racial background, make your decision at that point if it really is the organization for you, and that will determine whether you try again, or maybe try something else.

BTW, I am just not one of the those folks who looks at prospects "regardless of race." The Latina and Asian women who've applied for membership under my watch were fully aware that I took their ethnicity into consideration before offering them membership. Being a member of an ethnic group in America usually colors the way you look at "everything", and to ignore that fact is to minimize the legitimate differences that will arise, even if all the folks involved are members of "minority" groups. I respect their ethnicity enough to understand that if they became members, the chapter would need to be sensitive to their belief systems and cultural differences, as well as they be sensitive to ours.

Re: hmmmm...
 

I would have to agree with you on this one. I don't know if that person lives in the sticks or what, but at my University (from what I see), white students are not the majority. The only IFC Fraternity on campus is predominately white. We don't have any NPHC Fraternities on my campus either. Organizations will pick who they want, and this varies campus to campus, chapter to chapter. I know a lot of men who are not caucasion who would like to be memebers, but it doesn't happen for one reason or another. On the flip side, speaking for my own chapter, we don't have a slew of white or asian women seeking membership. There isn't 1 white female that I can think of on my campus right now who is Greek, and we have 4 Sororities to choose from. If they do join organizations, they tend to choose the local orgs who both claim to be multicultural, (however 10 years ago they were known as the all Jewish white girl sororities). Organizations try to change their image with the times. I can only speak for my organization and my campus. Anyone reading this who is thinking of being Greek, please don't take our comments for 100% factual as applying to every campus. See what the people at your school have to offer you. Don't shoot them down because of what you "think" that you know about them. If I would have done that, I may have ended up in another Sorority and I know for a fact that I would have ended up unhappy! That organization ran into a bit of trouble on my campus and would I have not looked into AKA and chose to ditch the other ladies, I would have been sitting around twiddling my thumbs maybe not being Greek at all. I was told to do my research and I will know what is right for me. I am so glad that I took that advice and didn't jump into something just because my friends did.

P.S.- If an organization doesn't want you due to your race, is that an organization that you'd really want to become a member of anyway? Or, would you try to change their minds and their rules (written or unwritten)? Anyone can answer this.

Tata for now and Happy Holidays!

Re: Re: hmmmm...
 

Do you mean the chapter or the whole organization itself?

Your race should not be a problem when you decide to rush. If it is then those people are not worth your time and efforts. My chapter has all kinds of races. We did not make it a big deal because it does not matter.

There was a line on Andy Richter recently about "celebrating and ignoring all the things that make us different and exactly the same," which was a joke, but I think it is what a good chapter of any org should be doing. In order to strive for diversity, something chapters ought to be doing in lots of areas besides race, you have to see the differences between people (and I find it hard to believe a person doesn't notice another's race). But you also have to see the person for a lot more than that. No one wants to be the token anything in their chapter. (And that includes the token athlete, the token fat girl, the token out-of-state girl.) No one should have to be limited to the D9 because they're African American or the the NPC groups because they're white - but no one wants to get into a GLO just so the group can prove they're open-minded, either.

Smiley, what you're going through is something a lot of rushees go through - the perception that some sororities are looking for X and you're not it. Unfortunately this is true in some cases, whether we're talking weight, popularity, or race - but that's the exception and not the rule. Race is so much more a loaded issue, though, than, "I think they're really a glamorous sorority, and I don't know if I'm cool enough." So yeah, people are going on tangents that aren't exactly helpful to you.

I would advise you to look at the options on your campus, and go with an organization that you can believe in, and that you think believes in you as a person, not as a symbol or as a body to fill up the house with. But that's the same advice I'd give to any rushee.

The Greek system is large and diverse, and I wouldn't give up just because you find some people off-putting. After all, there are weird universities and weird companies out there, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't go to college or work for a corporation. It just means you need to pick a good one.