[FuzzieAlum]

I certainly don't think there's anything wrong with co-ed GLOs. I think there are people who would prefer that, and both types of organizations can exist side by side. But I would rather be in a single-sex group.

Perhaps this is because gender is something much more defined and unchangable than race (unless you get the operation!). If someone has a Chinese grandparent, a German grandparent, a Nigerian grandparent and a Brazilian grandparent, what race are they? Do they belong everywhere or nowhere? But for someone to be half-boy and half-girl ... well, hermaphropdites DO exist, but they're not exactly common. (Now I know that most people define their own race more easily than in that example I just made up. But interracial dating and marriage are becoming more common.)

Then too in a single-sex house, sexual tensions are mitigated. Yes, there are lesbian and gay Greeks, but it's infrequent that they date within their own house. I get the impression that co-ed Greeks don't frown on inter-house dating. I suppose two of us could fight over the same guy, but at least we're not fighting over our own brother.

And in this day and age (most) women still learn better in single-sex environments. In a sorority they have opportunities to strengthen themselves before heading out into the real, co-ed world. Look around at any co-ed group, be it the workplace or a college glee club. You'll usually see more men at the top then women. I'm not saying, "Oh, men are oppressing us." It has just as much to do with women choosing not to strive for these positions as anything else. Men are still generally perceived by men and women as better leaders. So the sorority is one of the few environments where all women can learn their own strengths and gain leadership skills.

Maybe what it comes down to (and I'm getting myself into trouble by making a generalization here) is that most of us, whether or not we want our GLOs to be fully racially balanced, still want our groups to be OPEN to those of races other than the ones of our founders. Whereas many fewer of us even want our groups to be open to the opposite sex. Until we all really want that, I don't see a mass movement to co-ed Greeks happening.