Lol! It get's slow from time to time. But I pop in and out to see what y'all be up too. You need to get on facebook. I got some peeps I want you to meet...

Lol! No the ques abused it! That is all



:)

Lol! Yes Ma'am, but It sounds much better the way I said it!

Correction, gentlemen carried fashionable walking sticks and pledges carried stalfs. My founders carried canes, which were a sign of injury. Ask yourself what man bares signs of injury with pride?

Actually gentlemen carried staffs, walking sticks AND canes. I didn't mention the former two b/c the topic is canes. I've seen pictures of GDIs and fraternity men beyond KAPsi carrying canes from decades ago. Your founders carried canes as signs of injury but that doesn't mean anything for the general point. Canes were and are used for more than injury.

http://www.canesandsuch.com/history.html

So the origins of the cane for black fraternity men is a washed up topic since it was used by "gentlemen" in general and college educated bruthas at that time were in the "gentlemen" mold. But who started associating the cane as a symbol for their fraternity and stepping with it is a different topic that may never be proven unless PBS and KAPsi have official documentation to share.

Man, I want to see a step show one day. :(

I might try the facebook phenom...

To anybody who has posted in this thread in the last 3 1/2 years... Did you read the first 2 1/2 pages? You had the same discussion THREE seperate times! "Sigmas first... no it was kappas... SGRho... I seen everybody... not Ques... not Alphas.... Deltas and AKAs, what?"

Learn how to read! After the topic is debated once and the history of the Cane/Kane/Staff/Stick is broken down three seperate times, you all look awful silly and ignorant debating it again. As is quite often with GC, if you are going to post in a 5-year-old thread after two years your statement has probably already been typed!

Just like how you look awfully silly and ignorant resurrecting a thread whose post was in last December.

I won't even bring up the bit about you being a high schooler mouthing off to these members. Maybe you should go to proms and leave the canes up to the big kids.

Mmhmm.

i have a kane
just saying

as the saying goes...."often imitated but never duplicated"

Ok, Let's seperate fact from fiction.
 

I wrote that history several years ago. Some of it has been altered by others.

Fact number one: No one can actually lay claim to being the first steppers. Stepping originated in the DC/Baltimore area long before most of yall were born. The first fraternities were the Omegas, Sigmas and the Alphas.

It started during the doo-wop era and brothers used to sing in the quad. Like the old groups like the Temptations, and Four Tops, brothers began incorporating steps to mimic the groups. Back then tap dancing was really popular and damn near every brother on earth thought he had skills. Tap is still a major influence on how brothers step. Especially "Sigmas".

That's why when you went to step shows in that area back in the day they were called "Greek Sings".

Fact number two: The african boot dance and african influence was totally non-existant back then. It came into play a little bit much later. Think about it. In the 50's when stepping originated we barely heard of south africa. The african boot dance is very similar to stepping but it is a big misconception that it had any part in the development of what we call stepping today.

Fact number three: The first known cane steppers were Sigmas. Kappas didn't start stepping until much later. The Omegas, Alphas and Sigmas were the first steppers. They evolved it into what it is today.

That being said, you'd be crazy to say that the Kappas aren't the most innovative canes steppers on the planet. They definitely took it to another level. Cane stepping styles of Sigmas and Kappas are very different. If you ever seen step shows in the Chicago area back in the 80's you would know that the Sigma canes are very thick, heavy and medium length. They are used to tap out rhythms are not very easy to twirl. Kappa canes tend to be thinner, shorter in length and lighter. While they are stable enough to tap out rhythms, they are also easier to twirl and are better for their complexed routines.

We really need to get off that "who owns what - " non-sense. We are all brother and sisters.

What we really need to do is start thinking about the relevance of "BLGO" in this modern era. Back in the day, our organization were the place where the "Black Leaders" of our country were made and developed. (Along with the church!). This was our history and our legacy.

What are we now? We run around like we are gangs and thugs offering nothing to the community but parties, YouTube images that embarrass our families.

I've been a Sigma for almost 30 years. I'm not happy with what I see. We all need to step up and "be about something" or watch our organizations that we love so much become corrupted and morphed into abominations of disdain!

Fraternally,

Badstep

Wow... did an sgrho just ask that question? Most of us learned why we carry the cane on line. As an sgrho you have as much right to carry it as any other greek. I see sgrhos all over the place that carry,twirl, and step with a cane. The cane is something that has a rich history behind it. I am in shock that an sgrho asked this question.