Since this discussion has begun to center around Alpha Phi Omega/A Phi Q, I found it only fitting for me to put in my $19.25.
I pledged Alpha Phi Omega in 1992 and presently serve as an alumni brother. While I did not pledge at an HBCU, my pledging was very similar (the chapter was an all-black-male chapter).
Yes, the "A-Phi-Qs" step, has hand signs and calls, etc. We also recognize Gamma Sigma Sigma as our sister sorority (the "mainstream" brothers by & large do not).
I say all that to say this: I wholeheartedly commend the members of Pan Hell GLOs who respect and treat brothers from non-Pan-Hell GLOs, be it black (Gamma Phi Eta, Phi Delta Psi, Xi Gamma Phi, Delta Psi Epsilon), or mainstream (Alpha Phi Omega, Gamma Sigma Sigma, Kappa Kappa Psi, Tau Beta Sigma, Phi Mu Alpha).
While I do not personally have any beef with members of any of the Pan Hell GLOs (I am treated like family locally), I have came to the conclusion that based on prior experience (reading numerous guestbooks, chat room debates, personal discussions, etc), the NPHC as a whole tends to have a very ****y, aloof, arrogant, and sometimes beaugarde-ish (sp?) attitude when it comes to dealing with non-NPHC GLOs (An exception to this case would be Iota Phi Theta; IMHO Iota having dealt with similar experiences prior to being an NPHC member may have humbled them significantly. And this disrespect sickens me to the Nth degree. No one GLO is superior to another. I have been to social functions hosted by and primarily for non NPHC members where an NPHC org would show up and just start beaugardeing the brothers/sisters. Fights may not start, but tension was definately in the air.
Currently there is another Black Greek Council called the National Greek Alliance (NGA), but I don't think it will be as big as the NPHC on a grand scale. The consensus of most of the member orgs pretty much share my aforementioned concern. The common denominator on all these orgs founding was that they didn't agree with what the NPHC orgs on campus were doing at the time
Don't get me wrong. I support all NPHC organizations and their purposes. I plan on joining an alumni chapter of a NPHC org someday, so I am not anti-NPHC. I am anti-arrogant-attitude-that-comes-from-NPHC.
Thank you to all those who have showed me and my frat & other fraternities and sororities like us love. It was not in vain.
I'm outta here
Da Rain Man
"To business, to business, to business...."
-A very tipsy Alex Trebek on the last
episode of High Rollers (6/20/80)
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