[Hartofsec]

Originally Posted by tld221

That's what I got out of that anecdote. "Wonderful immigrant man from South American country" was PC for "(possibly) illegal amigo from disadvantaged circumstances had a daughter who beat the odds, so it IS possible! And I knew him!"

I think that many are probably reluctant to enter discussions like these due to the risk (probability, even) of having their comments misconstrued (the feeling that whatever they say will be pointed out as offensive, wrong, rooted in racism, etc). In order to have a productive discussion, it is important that all participants put aside preconceived notions and judgment about other’s intent.

Did you get anything from the research article I posted earlier? What did you think?

Originally Posted by tld221

Also. As someone who was interested in NPC greek life (well, being greek generally, but initially exposed and sought out NPC first) I couldn't have told you WHERE to find an NPC alumna. I had enough white teachers but how would I know, as a first-generation college hopeful, how to navigate all the preparation to become greek? I legitimately did not consider greek life until I got on campus. Thankfully I didn't attend a school like Alabama (super informal, no big houses, etc) but if I had, I'd have been SOL. Who would've primed me on tent talk, recs, and what to wear?

Especially since the Internet (and having access to a computer) wasn't something anyone I knew growing up had easy access to. An hour at a time at the library and maybe at lunch time. So tell me, in my largely AA, poor urban neighborhood, would I even have began?

I think that is a conversation we should be having.

Women who come from families or communities where sorority membership is common are privy to the unsaid rules, social norms, and expectations that are key parts of sorority recruitment.
http://afa1976.org/Portals/0/documents/Oracle/Park%20Fall2012.pdf

In my earlier anecdote, the young lady attended a large predominately white high school where discussion among UofA-bound girls concerning recruitment would be common. While she had no family connections or privileged background, she likely had many friends who were at least somewhat knowledgeable about recruitment. The PNM of interest last fall attended a small predominately white private school in Tuscaloosa (97% white), and her grandfather is a prominent UofA University Trustee. She would not be representative of a typical PNM - or of a typical AA PNM.

This is not an easy issue to address in a system with – in almost every way imaginable - a turbo-tacular recruitment. I’m interested in hearing what others think. How has this been addressed elsewhere?