Who's Out? Interesting site about gay members of greek orgs
 

Found this site thanks to another sister, and wanted to see what people's thoughts would be on it.

Who's Out? Gay men and women who are greek

Apparantly it's a site that gay men and women who are greek can add their names and they're grouped by sorority or fraternity. The sororities only have 74 women listed, but the fraternities have 523 listings.

Thought it was interesting... what are your thoughts?

What's to stop me from pretending to be someone else and listing their info (except use my contact info for verification)? Not that there is anything wrong with being gay, but many people who aren't would be upset as being labeled as such.

Speaking of misrepresentation, AGD doesn't have a chapter at Hamline University (it sounded unfamiliar, so I looked it up). So there's your first case right there.

Anyway, what's the point of even having a website like this? If I was gay, I would be afraid to post my information on the internet like that because you never know what kind of psychos would come after you.

If they can find a way to make the site more secure and reliable (and that can be done), I think that this is a fabulous idea.

First of all, the thousands of closeted Greeks out there can look at this site and maybe have a little less fear about coming out. They can say to themselves, hey, I'm not alone...other people have gone through what I'm going through, and they're OK...maybe I should come out, too. They can even get in touch with the gay Greeks who have provided e-mail addresses and possibly find sympathy, support, and advice that they couldn't get anywhere else.

Second, and just as important, people who think, "Gay members? Not in my GLO!" will see this site and realize that there are more closeted people out there than they ever imagined. They may think they have no gay friends, but in fact they have gay brothers or sisters. This may help them see gay people as people instead of as outsiders, and they may be more supportive when someone they know personally comes out.

Finally, we walk around saying we're straight constantly. We wear wedding rings, we walk around holding hands with our dates, we choose clothes that we think suggest our straightness, etc. It doesn't take any bravery to announce that we're straight. Nobody gets fired from a job, or rejected by their parents, or beaten up and hung on a fence to die because they are straight. Every day in America is straight pride day. So yes, if the people who put their names on this site are real, they are putting themselves at risk. They are courageously facing hatred in order to make the Greek world better for other gay members. I think they deserve our support and admiration.

Ivy

Has there ever been one there? It looks like the intro page invites collegiates and alums to add their names, so perhaps she is an alum.

Based on FAU's Greek Life page they don't have a Lamda Theta Alpha unless it is a club and not a sorority.

No chapter has ever existed at Hamline (or else I wouldn't have said anything). I checked the university's website and they have a chapter of Alpha Gamma Epsilon, so the woman must have made a mistake when she posted.

List of Alpha Gamma Delta Chapters

List of Hamline University student organizations

Please note---I'm not upset that AGD is listed there, I just wanted to point out that a mistake was made so it must be easy to go on and list someone else's info, as FuzzieAlum pointed out. Please don't flame me for saying something; I support all of my sisters no matter what their lifestyle may be!

I think that's very interesting that there's a lot of false info.... wonder how much else is wrong?

Dude, I'm straight and I still wouldn't post my info on the web! There are a lot of messed up people out there!

Me too. (Thanks for the info, DWAlphaGam.) I might have to look at the Sinfonia chapters a little more closely.

I'm looking for a word other than stupid to describe the site...
I just think that it's unsafe for these woman and men to post their full names, universities they went to, and then have a link to email them. Are they wanting gay bashers to threaten/stalk them? I certainly hope the people who created that site have some action plan if something terrible goes wrong.

Hootie

Lambda Theta Alpha is a latina sorority and it isn't associated with panhel and the chapter is on their national website. But no matter if the information on that website is right or wrong, we all know that in every chapter, of every sorority and fraternity, there are gay people there. So it would really be a waste of time to find out if that information on that site is accurate.

ehhh...
 

I think to make a page like that is kind of wierd. But, hey, if they are happy and proud to be gay then more power to them. But honestly, I wouldn't make it so public.

Ohh well, it's really their choice. I don't have much of an opinion about what they do. As long as I don't see my name on that list, I'm all for it! haha

I don't know about every chapter of every fraternity and sorority.... that's a bit of an exageration.

If your chapter consist of more than 20 members, active and alumna, I bet you anything that there is at least one gay people in the group.
Just because they aren't out doesn't mean they don't exist. A lot of people are in the deep, deep in the closet. They aren't always obvious. Please don't be fooled.

I agree, kddani, probably not EVERY chapter of EVERY org. has a gay or lesbian member.

I know people often say that 1 in every ten people is gay or lesbian, but most recent studies prove that it is actually closer to 3 or 4 percent of the population instead of ten percent.

The page basically exists so that people won't be afraid to be themselves. Sometimes, you really feel alone if you are a sexual minority joining a GLO. The site gives people the chance to see that they are not alone, and that the people who volunteer their names and emails are not afraid to step forward and help others in their GLO's.

The only way to conquer homophobia is to never cower before it. I applaud the people listed on the website.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE SHOW ME THAT REPORT. Why do people not believe that gays or lesbian are not apart of their organization or chapter :mad: ? That really makes me upset to think that just because someone doesn't come out and say "I'm gay", means that they are automatically straight. Never assume anything. GIVE ME A BREAK. I have meet a lot of member in greek organizations that are so deep in closet and are scared to come out because they don't want the sisters or brothers to treat them different or to ruin their sorority/fraternity's reputation. PEOPLE GET REAL!! They exist more than you think.

on the same token zchi2, can we see a report of your claims?

You can't tell someone that their viewpoint is inaccurate if you haven't given proof of your own.

I'm sure there are gay people in many GLOs, but that doesn't mean there is one in EVERY chapter of EVERY GLO. If a chapter is down to four girls (and it happens), whether ten percent or three percent of the population is gay, it still means that the chapter is likely to be only straight women at that point, statistically speaking.

Add to that the fact that many "out" gay people either assume Greek life is not for them - and that some GLOs would not take an openly gay member - it is likely that there are at least one or two chapters in this nation without a gay member.

Of course, even the most rampantly anti-gay chapter can have a closeted member, and I've known several quite open bi or homosexual Greeks.

I'm not entirely sure what the point of this site is - is it to convince homophobic Greeks to accept gay members? Is it to encourage gays to go Greek? Is it to give gay Greeks a supportive environment? This doesn't mean I think it's a wrong or bad site - I just don't understand the appeal. Most of the gay Greeks I've known were proud to be gay, and proud to be Greek, but they weren't making a big deal out of being a gay Greek.

zchi2, even if one accepts the premise that one out of every ten persons is gay or lesbian, that number can only be applied to the population as a whole or to a large, random cross-section of the population, not to a very, very small sub-group of only twenty or thirty people, and certainly not to a very small group that is self-selected. No doubt there are more gay or lesbian Greeks than many of us realize, but I think there is also no doubt that there are many chaoters with no gay members, if for no other reason than that the chapter culture discourages gays or lesbians from joining.

My 2 cents.

the problem I have is that you said that there are reports saying it's not 10 percent but 3 to 4. I never said there were studies saying that there were gay people at every chapter (even though i believe that). I seriously would like to read the study that you talking about that states this finding. And just to make my self clear I didn't mean there is currently gay people at every chapter. I talking about the throughout the history of a chapter. When you combine active and alumna, there was at least one person that actively participated in homosexual activity.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontl...sault/context/

http://www.qrd.org/qrd/www/youth/tremblay/app-a.html

I didn't cite any study, so get your people straight.

All I did was ask for some evidence to substantiate your claims. You make a claim, then dog someone else's claim. You don't have any evidence either. So how does that make your viewpoint better?

I'm sure that if you looked at EVERY member EVER initiated at chapters (some of which are 100 or more years old) you could find at least one of anything that you're looking for. The way you wrote it certainly made it come across to all of us that you were saying there is currently at least one gay in every chapter everywhere.

Also someone participating in a homosexual activity doesn't make them gay. Especially in this day and age, kids experiment. Participating in it one or a couple times doesn't make you gay. People get curious and just have fun. It does happen quite often... but that doesn't make them "gay"

I don't know enough about you to know why you feel so passionately about this. Are you yourself gay? If you are, more power too you, but like anything else in life that doesn't give you the right to incessantly impress your views upon others.

Good research, FuzzieAlum

No one will ever know a true figure so it's really hard to see. Like these articles say, there have been numerous studies showing between 1 and 17 % are gay. That's a huge discrepancy.

We'll never really know for sure. But it seems fairly pointless to guesstimate

I do agree that is an unsafe way for people to "come out". I worry that the "Less Progressive Minded" may harrass the names found on that web-site and the outed people may place their personal safety in jeopardy.

There are 2 people on this site from my school. The guy nobody knows, I even asked people from the frat. that he listed and noone knows him. Anyways, the girl everyone knows she is gay and noone has a problem with it. She is actually dating one of her sorority sisters. Anyways, I honestly don't care that there are gays in greek life. There are 3 sororities on my campus and all 3 have openly gay members. This site though is dangerous, I can see that it could possibly lead to discrimination or something else.

I dont know about this, there's a delta sig from my school listed there, but we dont even have a chapter of delta sig, and AFAIK we never have, its a nice idea i guess but until they can make it more secure, it's kinda fishy.

it's okay
 

Look, everyone needs to realize that there are homosexual members in every fraternity and sorority. Maybe they don't come out as an undergrad or maybe they do. But be prepared, somewhere down the line, to face it.

This website is a different way of announcing to the world about your sexuality, and I suppose there is reason to be suspicious about how the names are listed (proof, etc).

But to doubt that there are any gays or lesbians in your ENTIRE GLO is totally unrealistic. Just accept it - they are your brother or sister.

I don't think anyone is saying "not in my entire national GLO are there any gay people!" I think we all realize there are, and honestly, I could give a crap if one of my sisters wants to dance around with an "I'M GAY" sign on their head. The thing is that this site seems to have incorrect info or stuff that hasn't been thoroughly checked out which makes people uneasy.

there is also no Sigma Kappa Epsilon at my school, and someone is listed as it there

First of all, I want to start out by saying that I was NEVER denying the fact that there are gays and lesbians in GLOs... I am fully aware that there are. I was just citing information that shows that the "ten percent" rule of gay and lesbians is not quite accurate.

Unfortunately, I do not have the exact studies that I garnered this information from as it was over a year ago. However, here are several other items that support this:

-According to what I learned in a class (this is supported in actual published works, I just don't know which ones), the ten percent figure is based off flawed and misleading studies from the 40s and 50s.

-According to Census 2000 figures, there are a total of 106,741,426 households in the U.S., only .42% of those are unmarried same-sex households. This is less than one percent.

For instance, a nationwide random sample of 5,514 first-year Canadian college students under age 25 found that only 1% considered themselves bisexual and another 1% homosexual. A national poll showed that 2.4 percent of U.S. voters in the 1992 presidential election described themselves as homosexual.

Sorry, I had issues posting before I got all that formatted and stuff... anyway, that was my point... just that studies show that approximately two to four percent of the general population is homosexual. Therefore, obviously there are homosexuals in every national GLO, but not necessarily in each chapter.

Not that it matters either way... it was just a comment.

I'm okay with greeks who are gay but I don't know if I trust some of the listings. Like there's one for Delta Sigma Phi at UC Irvine. There isn't even a chapter there, unless Delta Sig's national website just doesn't have it listed.

Interesting. I know someone who is on the list. Not someone in my org or even my school, but the kid is in a gay fraternity so i'm not surprised.

hear me out
 

Like I said before, I only stated my opinion on the matter. When people say that there are reports saying that it is actually 3 to 4 percent, then that is no longer an opinion. It will be hard to truly test homosexuality, because most people would not admit to it. I have a friend whose father was married for 20 years with two kids but finally got a divorce because he was gay. If you asked him (on the phone or through a survey) if he was gay while he was married, he would of said no even though he knew he was living a lie. And this is not a rare event, because most of the gay people that he was friends with were also married and living a lie. I just hope that you would never say "there aren't any gay people in my chapter" in front of your brothers or sisters, because the person that you say that to might be someone that is secretly dealing with that issue. It would not help the person to come out if that is stated. It might push them deeper in the closet.

Also it isn't cool to do some massive search to see if everything on that site is accurate. So what if you don't know anybody by that name in a particular chapter. Maybe the person graduated a long time ago or maybe the person is no longer in the organization because people treated them badly when they found out they were gay. It doesn't matter. Do you all think that this website is going to give your organization a bad name because someone listed a name on there as an out gay person? Don't worry! Most people that see that list are gay themselves.
Also I think that it is good that they listed their name on this site. It is a way to declare to the world that they aren't ashamed. No matter what people might say to them or do, they aren't making any apologies for how God made them.

Ok, so it's not cool for us to check out the site and verify the info? I'm sorry but I didn't realize that we weren't allowed to use it.

I for one never take ANYTHING from the internet as absolute fact. If we accepted everything as fact then god knows what the world would be like.

It's a public site. We have every right to look at it. And why is it not cool for us to look for our school or our GLO? And info on it is definately false, as in saying that there's a chapter of an org at a school that there never was, that says a lot about the credibilty of the site.

No one cares if their GLO's name is up there or their school. No one here is making homophobic statements. We were interested in the site and checked it out. No one said anything in the least about it giving their org a bad name, so I don't know where you pulled that from.

I personally don't think that it is necessary to look up other people's chapters to find out if it is correct or not if that is not the organization that you are apart. It's really nothing to worry about. To go around campus to ask people if they know someone that was listed as apart of a certain group is really not necessary.

OK, from what you have said it IS necessary for us to believe that every chapter has had a gay member, but it's not necessary to ascertain that the chapters existed at that school??! That is what I am having the most trouble with. If someone said they were an ASA from the University of Washington (where we have never been) or a KKG from Clarion (where they have never been) you can bet I'd be emailing and demanding that be removed from the site. Not because I'm homophobic, but because the person who used the group's name would be perping, which is WRONG.

Yes, it IS something to worry about if a person is making any kind of statement and attaching letters to it which do not belong to them. It puts a weight behind the person's actions which is not warranted.