Sorors' Have you seen this???
 

Apparently this has been all over the internet, but I just now got the memo. Check out this tomfoolery!!! :(

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dccxhjbc_0jg35cp

I saw this on facebook just today. It's really sad.

I try to educate gay men on this as best I can....there are ways to have a support system and embrace your softer side (for lack of a better phrase) without disrespecting existing institutions.

:mad: They can wear the colors and even imitate some styles but they will not ever be a member of my organization. I can't believe they would go out in public like that. That is such a disgrace

They have been around for awhile--the same as Delta Beaux/Gents. I've read that on some campuses they are "pledged" by members of the respective sorority. *shrugs*

I posted this response on facebook:

Let me start by saying that this, indeed, is a mess.

Men claiming to be members of sororities is not a new phenomenon, however, at least not new in 2007. It has been around since at least the 1980s.

Why do gay men do this? I don't know. I am a gay man - openly gay for many years - and I have never had the desire to pledge anything but a fraternity. I always knew that fraternities were for men and sororities were for women. (Later I came to learn about coed fraternities, but that's beside the point.)

I do not know what it is about sororities, sisterhoods, and all things feminine that some gay men find affinity with. But I do acknowledge that some gay men find mutual support and friendship in those entities that I personally do not find comforting: drag shows, vogue balls, and yes, "sororities."

What is most dangerous about these organizations is not the trademark infringement, but the sense of entitlement they feel because they pledged long and hard. Yes, to most of us....

..pledging long and hard for THIS is worse than being a renegade, but at the same time, who do we have to blame for the division in the first place? We indoctrinate in our membership that they are worthless if they didn't sweat, bleed, and cry for our orgs.

To the little credit I intend to give these men, they are emulating what they see us doing.

Now what can you all do about it? Not much. If you are already a homophobe, I strongly suggest that you leave them be and allow more tolerant people to talk sense into them -- better yet, let an actual gay man, a gay greek man (doesn't have to be me) talk to them about finding a better way to express their identity, independent of Alpha Kappa Alpha, DST, and the other orgs they emulate.

Believe that your national offices are handling the trademark aspects....let insiders to the culture handle the other traditions. If you confront them, you will make it worse.

Believe a man in drag is still a man and will fight you as such, lol

I am speechless. Mercy.

Senruset rocks.

I blame the AKA and Delta chapters that allow such tomfoolery to begin in the first place for the existence of these auxilliaries. These men know they are MiAKA and aren't really AKAs. They aren't the same as men who have fake AKA or DST membership certificates and cards. Or, are they? :(

Weren't MiAKA and Delta Beaux/Gent (:rolleyes: ) started as men who had a love for AKA and DST and wanted to help out just like sweethearts help the frats? Weren't many of them men who dated AKAs and Deltas? That's what I was told.

that's the story i always heard. but like most things, people always take stuff to the next level and go messing up a good thing.

i mean, to me, they are saying "im a gay man who feels like i would fit better in a sorority than a fraternity because i am (more likely) more comfortable around women. therefore i am willing to emulate femininity and in that, imitate being a soror of AKA/DST. and for that NPHC effect, i will put numbers on a mask and stand in height order so i can say i was on a line. how ya like me now - okkkkkkkkk?"

my point - if being a miAKA was once a positive identity, it may be tarnished because it will become synonymous with "gay dudes who want to be sorority girls."

wouldnt it just be more comfortable to come to terms with your masculinity and say, "ok i am gay and i do think im pretty and i want to be greek, but i'm (biologically) a woman first and since sex (not gender mind you) is the one inflexible, absolute requirement of being a sorority member, then no dice for me? besides, im was a man first and gay second so..."

i dunno, thats me trying to make sense of it.

and rashid is always sick with a response - holla!

dang, lol

i knew those pics would be getting out hella fast.

I didn't know Katt Williams was an Ace... new day folks! LOL!

But... yo, the shield... I hope Aka's HQ gets in that arse for that! Infringement?

Right on both accounts. It started back in the day when AKAs and Deltas had "sweethearts" and "courts." The guys used to really help us out by making sure fights didn't break out at parties, sorors weren't harrassed, they escorted us to night classes, helped make paddles (FOR GIFTS), etc.

Often they were members of the frats. But somewhere along the line, they started being ridiculed as men wanting to be AKA or DST.

To all: this has been posted in the AKA forum. Maybe we should continue the discussion there.

ridiculous
 

i think the pictures are ridiculous.

there are gay oriented fraternities that are out there.

i know plenty of Delta Gents and Miaka that are ole school and most were in fraternities and were always around to help out the sororities.

*lol* they do need to be educated. senusret, *lol* at the man in drag

[quote=DSTCHAOS;1399016]Senruset rocks.

I blame the AKA and Delta chapters that allow such tomfoolery to begin in the first place for the existence of these auxilliaries. These men know they are MiAKA and aren't really AKAs. They aren't the same as men who have fake AKA or DST membership certificates and cards. Or, are they? :(



I got the e-mail about that crap this morning.....while I was trying to finish my homework (minutes before class)...I was livid!!!!! Eventhough they will never be a part of any SISTERHOOD, not a SHEM-HOOD, they should for over the money.......b/c when I paid my money (eventhough I wanted to) my bank account cried out for help....it had flat lined. But seriously that is just gross.

There are Sorors on that campus, I just wish I knew how those Sorors feel? I wonder do those guys? try to affiliate with the members of the Sorority? Maybe it is my neo-isms, but I just wanna know.

Yeah- I wonder how that works on a campus that has a chapter- I mean I just can't imagine how those Sorors feel. It would cause sooo much more drama than anyone needs in their life, lol.

<p>I am no gang banger, but if I saw one of those supercalifraglisticexpyalidocious fools carrying around a replica of our crest.......I would want to kisk some @$$<p>

I just finally saw the pics. OMFG!!:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: Too much for my soul.

:mad: :( The founders must be rolling over in their graves. Speechless!

To the men who are members of underground sororities:

Wow, what attention has been brought to you in the past few days! No matter where we turned, we saw pictures of one of your events. In our email, on message boards, and on facebook, we saw pictures of what appeared to be a probate show. Several comments we read about these pictures were complimentary – focusing mainly on your outfits and masks, as well as some of your individual physical features.

Unfortunately, the majority of the comments we read were negative. The homophobia that was so virulent in these responses was not your fault. We will not condone any responses that threatened your safety or right to express yourselves the way you see fit. Those comments against you were wrong and we hope that those people one day see the error of their hatred.

You know that the world in which we live is not forgiving to gay men. You know that it is even less forgiving for gay men who embrace a more feminine aesthetic. In 2006, our hero Kevin Aviance was nearly beaten to death. Transgender people all across this country are being brutally murdered. And we aren’t that far away from the death of Matthew Shepard. Yes, it is dangerous out here for all gay people, especially those who are not closeted or on the so-called “DL.”

That is why along with the right to express yourselves freely also comes a very important responsibility. Gentlemen, your actions go beyond expressing yourselves. You are expressing an affinity for and connection to an organization that does not feel that same connection to you. It is unfair of you to express yourselves in this way when the vast majority of members of this organization do not identify with you.

When you dress in pink and green, assume the “ivy stance” and mirrors, have probate shows, line up according to height and number yourselves…when you assemble yourselves into an organization that, at best, idolizes the organization that you admire so highly, it actually does the exact opposite of what you intend. It forces a relationship that was not meant to be. It is unfair to the women that you idolize.

By now, many of you are reading this and are pointing to your history as a justification for your existence. We will not be the one to tell you that your history is not real. However, we do implore you – share the text that confirms the existence of “Wade Lyle” and then we can continue this discourse on a scholarly level.

Until then, we ask you, men to men – stop what you are doing. In addition to the strife you are causing the women you admire, you are making it hard for gay men who are fighting in other arenas on your behalf. The closeted gay men who were inching toward the outness that you celebrate are now inching in the other direction because of the homophobia that you are inciting. The out gay men who are striving toward equality can’t defend you when your lack of decorum is so blatant.

What can we now? We humbly and respectfully ask you to stop. It is harming gay black men. It is harming the sorority you are emulating. It is harming men in gay fraternities with their own unique identity. It is harming gay members of traditional fraternities and sororities. In fact, your actions are only benefiting yourselves – which is antithetical to the values of the sorority you are attempting to emulate.

You have the power to end underground sororities. If it is fraternalism that you seek, there are several fraternities for gay men of color. In fact, there are fraternities for lesbian women – why can’t there be a sorority for gay men? I want you to be inspired to make that change. Eliminate the traditions of another organization from your program. Be yourselves. Be strong. Be unique.

If you do not stop these behaviors, we cannot continue to include you in the discourse on equality. It is unfair to have to defend your right to express yourselves when you take it too far. In addition, if you do not end these harmful traditions, we will not support your candidacy in traditional fraternities through sponsorship, letters of reference, or an affirmative vote. Finally, we will endeavor to report your unauthorized use and reproduction of registered trademarks to the appropriate officials. Your use of official sorority symbols is perhaps the most brazen of your disrespectful actions.

We will continue to pray for your continued safety in the areas in which you operate. Most importantly, we will continue to hope that you change your ways before a homophobe decides to take the decision away from you.

Peace and blessings,
Concerned gay men of color.

*If you know an underground sorority member, please send this to them.*

Disrespectful to all of us, not just AKAs.
 

it has taken me all day to come up with something to say. Although I am a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority,Inc. I am LIVID!!! IMO, this is not only disrespectful to AKA and everything they stand for but it also MOCKS all BGLOs! These organizations were founded to UPLIFT the community and be agents of social justice and change, not strut and prance and wear pari all day. These young fools obviously think that's what all BGLOs are about.

My father (Kappa :) ) and stepfather (Omega:) ) saw these pics and were not happy. (To say the least). Our organizations were (@ founding) and still are shelters in the storm (my father attended Indiana U in the 70s and can attest to that).... They were founded on Christian principles to show African-Americans in an educated and positive light. When BGLOs were founded at the earlier part of the last century, we were regularly lynched, maligned, and regulated to 2cd and 3rd class citizenship! Our organizations were founded to counter the image of the animalistic, hedonistic African-American and be active in the Civil Rights struggle that still exist today.

I JOINED DELTA SIGMA THETA SORORITY, INC. BECAUSE I BELIEVE IN THE MISSION OF MY BELOVED ORGANIZATION and in MY BEAUTIFUL WISE AND BRAVE FOUNDERS!! I STRIVE TO BE A BEACON IN MY COMMUNITY AND AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT A GOOD DELTA AND A MEMBER OF DIVINE NINE SHOULD BE. I'm not from a very big city so some people can't really distinguish between different organizations so on some level I do feel like I represent all of us.

I know I'm rambling and I hope that my comments don't come off as homophobic b/c they're not. I actually have gay relatives and I love them. These young men just embarrassed themselves and based on the angry homophobic comments that got pulled from Facebook they made lots of enemies too. I understand they feel like they want to be a part of something bigger than themselves... maybe they feel rejected in their own communities and familes for being gay. (Just a thought) But like a previous poster said there is a Black Greek Organization for Gay Men. If they wanted to make a statement (i.e. BE SERIOUS) and be agents of change in the gay community and do bridge building work with other BGLOs on campus and in the community at large: That would have been the way to go. Petition to start a chapter on your campus; don't hijack and mock someone else's org.

That's my two cents.

I posted my comments b4 i read the above letter. THANK YOU!!! You words are elegant and I'm glad that someone from your organization chose to speak on the subject. We just had that group from Kansas protest at another soldiers funeral last week and I'm tired of the homophobia, racism, and hatred.

Bless you so much!!

Well said to Lyoness and KingFriday.

While the trappings of our organizations - calls, colors, stances- are fun and meaningful in their way they are not the heart of what we stand for. When I think of the history of our orgs I am SO PROUD to be a member. By mimicing the trappings without understanding or really seeming to care what lies beneath these young men are doing themselves a disservice. They would be better served creating an org that would celebrate and uplift their community and the greater community through their works. One ina an original mold that would be meaningful to THEM.

I refuse to believe that such photos are to be used as more than brief entertainment.

Those of you who are using these photos as an opportunity for an "I Have A Dream Part II" speech, need to save it.

This stuff has been going on long before internet photos made this material for public scrutiny. Nobody cares about the manifestos of naysayers. It just gives more attention to already extremely vain and excessively flamboyant male sorority members. If this is meant to be spoken out against and stopped, the AKA chapters and AKA nhq will do something. If they choose not to, I advise others to not waste their time and energy.

Maybe they are the ones who helped these men be what they are. Maybe not. The most important thing is that it's Friday and I'm craving some seafood.

TGIF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, first of all, I wish that people would stop calling them "sorors" and "sorority" members. Anyone who has ANY knowledge about greekdom should know what "soror" means and thus, they are NEVER going to be anyone's "soror." People need to get up on their information.

Second, there are going to be some things in life that I will just never understand. This silliness is one of them. To me, it's akin to a child admiring her mother so much that she dresses up like her in her mother's clothes. Eventually, that child grows up and becomes her own woman. Similarly, why not just form your own fraternity? Goodness knows everybody's doing it these days so it's obviously not that difficult. LOL.

I'm perturbed about them appropriating our symbols and thereby associating our organization with their foolishness. Perhaps I need to check with my soror-friend at Corporate to see what can be done.

SC

Media Takeout has this story now:eek:

Def!

Sorry, hijack.

I'm not defending this group in particular (nor do I want to), but re: using the terms "soror", "sister", or "sorority" for male individuals or groups with men ... Just like some orgs are coed fraternities (ie APhiO, KKPsi), others are coed sororities (ie OPhiA, GSS, TBS). When men join these sororities (more common in some orgs than others), they are referred to as sorors or sisters, just as a female member of APhiO is called a brother.

LOL!! :D

Way to overstate the obvious.

They are "male sorority members." Not because they are women or official members, but because they have crossed the line from auxilliary to something else. Take that up with them. LOL.

What I found ironic about the debacle is that when my chapter decided to participate in the AIDSWalk to raise funds for HIV/AIDS, summa dem heffas were pissed off we wore the 'nalia they so much desired...

But, now AKA corporate--yes, we've gone corporate--is sue happy and love to take folks to court. Like other D4 sororities, all our stuff is now trademarked... And we really could use the $$$.

Folks do understand that...

"And with a mouth like yours, they really gonna like you in jail..." -Ice Cube

And that concept is just as ridiculous.

It's not ridiculous to respect what an organization calls its own members.

Which concept are you referring to? Coed orgs, or what those orgs term their members, or both?

Either way, I'm sure that you'll agree that what goes on within an organization, and its practices and policies, are very special to those organizations, and that they have their own reasons for doing things the way they do that not everyone outside them will always understand (or have to). So long as they are not infringing on others (such as the MiAKAs are doing, in a very blatant and disrespectful way), then there's no reason not to respect others' traditions.

I do agree with those sentiments, however, it sounds ridiculous for a woman to call another woman her "frat brother" or for a man to call another man his "sorority sister". That sounds absolutely ridiculous. Do I respect their right to have such a tradition? Certainly. Am I entitled to an opinion on how it sounds to an outsider? Certainly. Do I really care about why they do it? No, because I'm not a member of any such organization. ~shrugs~

I respectfully think it sounds ridiculous.

ETA: I apologize for my role in sending this thread in a different direction. Now that we all know SKEE's thoughts on non-gender neutral titles in mixed gender organizations, we can continue the discussion on the original topic.

You're a hypocrite.

I'm not going to comment, comment, so I what I will say is I saw the pics....and OH MY!!:eek:

Soror, I agree with you wholeheartedly. I think it's ridiculous for a woman to be ok with being called a man (i.e., a "brother") and a man to be ok with being called a woman (i.e., a "sister").

ETA: To me, it's ridiculous b/c you are being called something that you are not. For example, if there was a sorority out there for only people of XYZ nationality and the way of referring to the person was by that nationality (e.g., What's up fellow American sister?) and you are *French* then, to me, it is ridiculous to introduce yourself as an American sister of Q organization when you are *French*. Analogously, why require a member to be called a brother and she is a woman or vice versa? But if the women and the men whom are mislabeled are ok with it then whatever I guess.

DSTChaos, I do not think that the reasons why people want to justify calling them "sorors" or "male sorority members" really makes much sense. As we all know. In the Divine 9, we don't have any coed sororities or fraternities so therefore, there is no such thing as a "male sorority member" in Alpha Kappa Alpha, nor in any other sorority in the Divine 9. Further, how can you be a male sorority *member* if you're not a *member*. Would you refer to the dudes trying to call themselves members of Delta Sigma Theta as your "male sorority members"? Of course not. B/c they are not. So why use the term when it comes to Alpha Kappa Alpha?