Sprite Step-Off Update: ZTA and AKA to share 1st place
 

Step team shares 1st in national finals after racial controversy
http://idsnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=74077

I dont know if this is old news but I thought it was interesting.
I wonder what the "descrepancies" were.

Just Wow...
 

That's just stupid. It's 2010 and people can't get beyond race. It is stupid that a "white" sorority couldn't be seen as the 1st place organization because some people were "offended" or "upset" that they won. That's pretty pathetic in my mind. The people who made such an issue about it seem just as racist as they claim others to be. Good grief. If I was a Zeta, I'd be pretty pissed.

I'm glad that both organizations did well at this step-off, but to take away someone's "honor" because there was racial controversy says a lot about today's society.

Just "WOW" is pretty much all I can say. Oh, and FWIW (before I get flamed for my opinion) I respect all GLOs and some of my best friends are SGRhos, AKAs and Deltas. I don't really know many Zetas, but the ones I have met have been sweet, as well. I just think that in this day and age people need to see beyond color and be happy that they can share a stage and an incredible talent.

^^^Agree 100%

From what I've heard, the discrepancies seem to be that ZTA copied AKA's routines, therefore being unoriginal which is not acceptable in any kind of competition, really. And apparently none of the judges were Greek so some feel that they weren't qualified to judge such performances.

And those are "the discrepancies" that will likely be used to "justify" this decision.

I would urge you ladies (als and kappamd) to take a look at the discussion on this topic on the Alpha Kappa Alpha and Delta Sigma Theta boards--if you want to broaden your perspective, that is.

Actually, it's a good thing that AKA kept it classy. The nerve of one group to compete against another using their steps. In D9 and BGLO world this is a no no for sure. Those outside of the D9 who want to step are welcome to but don't just do the steps, learn about the tradition and the stepping culture. If you respect others, then others will respect you. Has nothing to do with race, at least not from my point of view.

The year has absolutely nothing to do with it. Social dynamics haven't changed.

I haven't seen racism used with this, but whatever's whatever.

Correct, any organization with no real history of stepping, that won because it shocked people and that's all, can't be seen as the 1st place organization. In this instance, it was a "historically and predominantly white sorority." That is also why this news feed is reaching so many people who would otherwise not give a damn about ANY of this stuff. Therefore, it is also reaching people who have absolutely no basis for their opinions and they don't know that stepshow results that are deemed unfair are always challenged. People just have different reasons to challenge these results because they know the nature of the beast.

Sprite and MTV2 knew what they were doing--welcome to the world of race (which is not synonymous with racism). A non-NPHC org that was still predominantly Black wouldn't have received such coverage.

Just Wow at your comments. Just because you object to something doesn't make you a racist. Sure some people may have those feelings but the majority have legitimate issues with this whole production and the way things were handled, and not just regarding ZTA.

If anyone is to blame it's Sprite and/or MTV and they are just trying now to save face although it's really too late. Many errors and wrong doings occurred during this event even in the regional competitions. My sorors for example, competed against other D9 sororities coming in last place in Chicago when it was obvious that they should've come in 1st or 2nd. Sprite then reviewed the scoring sheet and changed the decision and gave my sorors 2nd place, although some still believed they should've gotten 1st. Errors like this occurred throughout the entire competition from what I hear and everything was very disorganized. Scoring sheets were reviewed several times because of discrepancies. It became obvious to many that Sprite was really only interested in capitalizing on the popularity of the D9. Many also thought that this was only a D9 competition since the D9 was used mostly for advertising and promotion. Many members were shocked to learn eventually that the competition was not a D9 event.

Oh and ZTA's "honor" has not been removed. If Sprite wanted to take away their win and therefore their "honor," they would disqualify the team for doing all D9 steps and for booty popping at the end of their performance, something that D9 orgs were told not to do or they would be disqualified.

Race did three things here:

1) Made people, in general, pay closer attention to the competition and THIS team. That had a social-psychological impact on damn near everyone who was paying attention to this;

2) added insult to injury regarding the results;

3) and; provided a historical reminder of days not too long gone.

LOL @ some of my bestfriends are _________.

Exactly. And within the D9, stepshow results are challenged/opinions voiced all the time when members believe scoring/judging was not fair. Race has nothing to do with it.

And my personal favorite white person comment: "It's 2010 and people can't get beyond race."

They seem like pretty valid discrepancies to me. Put yourself in the AKA's shoes - lets say your school does/did Greek Sing or some kind of talent competition for Greeks to showcase their skills. You and your sisters have pretty much trademarked something that EVERYONE knows is Kappa material, be it steps, the music, costumes, or whatever. Some other sorority, whether they are new or not or NPC or not, uses your material(s) and wins first place, and you don't. Would you not be highly pissed off? I know I would be.

It's reaching me and I still don't give a damn. I'm only here for the trainwrecks.

If what you're saying in this paragraph is true, then the whole event, from regionals to nationals sounds like a bogus competition where Sprite/Coke is only worried about the marketing implications and covering their ass.

Perhaps the best solution would be to take the whole event away from this "corporate agenda driven" entity and put it back into the realm of college competitions where the judges would be collegiates with the proper credentials and knowledge of history of the dances/steps to make the correct judging decisions.

IMO, the controversy only underminds the legitimacy of the competition (just like in scoring at the Olympics)

In most cases, active alumnae members do the judging since collegiates are less likely to be completely honest, but I do agree that we need to keep it in house so we have more creative control, especially when we are used mostly for advertising and promotion. Also, getting the word out to all D9 chapters about the qualifying rounds of this competition could have been better planned which is why I believe many of the best teams around the country didn't even compete.

I know! You beat me to it.
________
HOT GIRLS LIVE

It was never legitimate as far as I was concerned. I don't like such mass productions based on media appeal and all that nonsense. Their "first ever" will hopefully never be an "annual." :)

I saw that, too.

Corporate sponsorship is what makes most of these exhibition/competitions possible, like The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. And hell, without Tampax, we wouldn't have the national cheerleading competitions!

Isn't it funny how those who claim to challenge notions of race and prejudice (they aren't challenging racism) use cliches like "it is the 2010...why so serious?" and "some of my bestfriends are (in the NPHC)" Same type of language.

So, congrats on being different, just like everyone else. :)

As for corporate sponsorship making these largescale events possible, very true. I don't like largescale stepshows. Homecoming shows and local and regional shows are more than enough for me. Sure, more money is won with this Sprite thingies but I think the attempt at "reality tv" buffered the benefits of the money.

She means that we should just keep it on the collegiate level where we have the most creative control. For years, most stepshows have been held on college campuses where mostly college students and those in the local community attended, sponsored and organized by the BGLO's. These huge productions like the Sprite Step-Off are only a recent phenomenon since the "Stomp the Yard" movie. These big companies could care less about the tradition and culture, just about making money of course.

This was my thought from the beginning. I, obviously, have no expertise in stepping, but from an outsider looking in, it is apparent that Sprite was looking for publicity through controversy. They found it...and more than they were looking for, I think. I don't blame ZTA, they are in over their heads. They did the best they could and won for the novelty of it. I don't think that they realized that their actions would be seen as disrespectful. Sprite used them for publicity.

i can't believe she thought anyone would take her seriously while using that line. lmao

likewise.

Actually, I said that because I knew people would get all up in arms thinking that I hate other races or don't care about the D9 organizations. I was making a point that I would have a hard time putting down any of those organizations when I have friends in them. Just like, my cousin is a member of another NPC, and I would never say anything disparaging about them (or any other NPC for that matter). If that makes you laugh, that's great. Good for you. I don't really care what you think about my remark. It was said to make a point. I have friends of all different races (and I am Latino), so I don't want anyone trying to "peg" me as a racist.

I do think that the same people who keep saying that the ZTAs don't understand the roots of stepping or they didn't deserve to win are just making excuses. I feel like the people who say that this ISN'T about race are just lying to themselves. If another D9 organization did some of the same steps and won, maybe they'd get bitched about, but there wouldn't be as much of a stink about it, I don't feel. I think a lot of it has to do with some people feel cheated that this predominantly white organization won a competition that many feel they shouldn't have won.

Either way, I say "Congrats" to the women of ZTA. I also say "Congrats" to anyone who participated in the show. I've seen step-shows at our school and I always admired them. It is hard work and I respect that.

To the underlined point:
That is what makes your comment funny. It is in fact a bit funnier now that you've explained. It makes people want to day "Bless yo po' lil heart" or my personal favorite "Po' lil Tink Tink."

To the bolded points:
Your last point was correct. Many people felt that the predominantly white organization won a competition they shouldn't have won because they were corny and their show was not good enough to win.

In a competition like the Fiesta Bowl, two teams battle it out on the field. Nobody is judging the artistic content of the touchdowns. ;) When and if the Step competitions become physical contests (like a race) with one set of clear winners with no subjectivity, then go back to big corporate sponsorship - otherwise there's likely to be more years of bad results.

When judging gets involved, it can be rife with controversy. In the case of the Sprite Step Show, it sounds like from beginning to end they didn't know what they were doing, hence having to go back and change results, which led to controversy.

They got celebrity judges, because it would make it more "marketable", but the judges had no idea about the context and history of the dance moves, so they went for the "shock" team - "Ooh! White girls dancing in Matrix outfits!" even though it had been done before and with the same steps (and better) according to the other thread.

I'm not taking anything away from the Zetas, I mean, they look pretty good to me! But, I can see where folks might be upset that "their steps" were co-opted. If alumni familiar with the history (and who "owns" the steps) had been judging, they would have been given props for the dance, but the prize would have gone to the original dancers of the steps.

(I've seen Bring It On - you don't use someone else's moves! :))

Tangent, because this is a whole other thread....
it's not subjective like you just described, but let's not act like the BCS system is based on the "content (ed: or quantity) of the touchdowns."

the bitter Mizzou fan will STFU now

Actually the AKA's at their school taught them to step, so the K's need to be mad at their sorors and its sad that the validity of ZTA winning is challenged because of ppl whining. they won fair and square, step your game up! Sprite never said the step off was for D9 orgs only and i find it funny how no one said anything about non-black orgs being in it until ZTA won

tl;dr. i honestly don't care if ure racist or not. and you care too much what people think too. it's a message board.

after the comments you made abt the killer whale and this, i think i hate you. :D
ctfu

i heard this argument before, dunno if its true or not, but if it is, then that's hilarious and childish.

He/She doesn't know what their talking about and who knows whether those involved in the show said anything or not. Also, except for those stepping in the show, many members really didn't know the show wasn't a D9 production until later. Much of the advertising ONLY included D9 orgs and the NPHC Council of Presidents (made up of all NPHC International Presidents) backed the event, encouraged us to participate, and communicated a partnership between NPHC and Sprite. Um, what would you think after hearing that? And for those members that haven't been following the competition closely, some are just learning that this wasn't a D9 event; they had no idea until recently. Also, one of my sorors who judged the competition during the regional round in my area, said she asked a Sprite rep who was able to participate and she was told NPHC. So it sounds to me that Sprite did some manipulating and misleading at best and I haven't heard about anything yet, but if NPHC leadership does conclude that we were misled in some way, we probably won't be encouraged to participate next year. And by the way, ZTA wasn't the only non-D9 org that participated, just the only NPC sorority.

Bottom line, there is a whole lot that went on that many don't know anything about. Those that were involved in the actual competition (judges, organizers, and steppers) know the most and some are speaking out now about a lot of things (unfair treatment of members, horrible scoring and judging, disorganization, being misled, etc.).

1. Disclaimers make thou protesteth too much.
2. What would your comments have to do with hating other races or not caring about D9 organizations? :rolleyes: It was only that serious because you made it that serious. I don't think you know what you're talking about, but that has nothing to do with assumptions of how you feel about other races and D9 organizations.

What the hell does "Po' lil Tink Tink" even mean? What a stupid thing to say. I have no idea who you are or what you think you know about me. Saying that they shouldn't have won makes YOU seem a little childish. Oh, and if you're going to come on here and make comments (or at least attempt to insult me) please say something that makes sense to people OTHER THAN YOU.

You may disagree with what I have to say, but I just didn't want people on here to think I'm this horrible person that is a racist. I made a comment a while back regarding some girl asking about being heavy set and joining a sorority and people got up in arms thinking I hate heavy set people. I just felt the need to put that disclaimer in because I don't need people thinking, "Gee, that als463 must be a hater!" I'm not. I just think that it is great the Zetas won an award that many people didn't think they would get.

Disclaimer: I don't hate minorities (I am one) and I don't have an issue with heavy-set people (I have many heavy-set family members).

That's how we feel about what you said. :) There ya go.

You tried too hard. Next time, just say what you have to say and let other people wrestle with the rest.

Besides, what would your comments have to do with being a racist or a horrible person? :rolleyes: Seriously.

LOL! You are "slap yo knee" funny. ;)

well.....damn! that's all there is to say.

:D

I had a whole response until my internet got knocked out by the snow, so the short version:

Whoever said I need to broaden my perspective: Thanks, but I have read those threads. I mean come on. There are what? 5? I didn't post in them before because I honestly didn't have anything to add.

I do, however, think it is shady as hell for Sprite to make this decision after this week of controversy. Any discrepancies there may have been a. should not have happened and b. should have been addressed sooner than they were. Now, it just seems like they're trying not to step on anyone's toes, for lack of a better phrase.

Whatever, just my opinion.