Baffled.........

[onesavvydiva]

First of all Ladies, Hello and Happy Tuesday,

I am so extremely disappointed, I studied and studied it seem as for like the last 3 week for this test and I just knew that I passed with flying colors....got my scores back today and I almost cried right there in class. But I guess I just need to suck it up and study harder, finals are right around the corner.

Anyway, the purpose of my post is that something very baffling occured to me today. During my free period today I was sitting in a little side canteen room and this girl came in an sat at my table. She was very nice and we chatted for a few minutes. Anyhoo, she was caucasion, and she had on a T-shirt that said
"AKAs Love The SC House"
So I politely asked if she was an AKA. She said yes. So later I asked her where did she pledge. She was like "huh?", I said "what school did you join the sorority at?" she was like "I am not in a sorority" So needless to say I am stumped...so I was like you are not an ALpha Kappa ALpha? No, she said. I asked her where she got the shirt from and she said a former roomie of hers was a page at the South Carolina HOuse of Representatives, and she just happened to have come across the shirt and she was wearing it. So I explained that AKA was a sorority and although there are some caucasian members, it's is very rare. So she was like "Oh that's why I have been getting funny looks, I thought that an AKA was a nickname for the page's at the House of rep., after a while I just started saying yes when people asked me was I an AKA" I said " well you might not want to tell anyone else that, and you may want to rethink wearing that shirt" (I said it very polite, I wasn't overbearing being that I am not a member). She was like "No, this shirt is comfortable, people can just think what they may, I dont care!!" So I was like "OK and left it at that, I didn't think I had any bearing to go any furthur. But if you saw a person wearing a shirt like this wouldn't you automatically assume they were a member...I mean if I wore a shirt that said "Blondes have more fun" I would get funny looks b/c Im not a blonde. Feel me???

Has anyone ever saw a shirt like this??
Sorry for the long post but it was hard to condense this story...



------------------
'Cause I'm a woman,
Phenomenally
Phenomenal Woman
That's me

Maya Angelou

[AKAtude]

Yes, we do have sorors of various races, but honestly if I saw a white person wearing a shirt like that I wouldn't automatically assume she is my soror. I would question her like you did because my first impression would be that the letters AKA may stand for something else.

Now, the fact that she lied when you asked her if she was an AKA is what bothers me. Why would anyone say "yes" to something they don't know what they are saying "yes" to. If the shirt belonged to a former roomie, then I think she should have known that what the shirt represents. Her response to you telling her she might want to rethink wearing the shirt, in my opinion, shows a lack of respect.

Hi Sorors & S.F.'S

I had a similiar experience with someone wearing para. I kindly asked the girl where she pledged at and she replied confused. I then explained to her what she was wearing and gave her a comparison that she could understand. She stated that she saw the hat in N.Y. and liked the colors.She took well to my advice and thanked me for warning her and removed the hat. I guess certain people take heed to ones words than other people do. And might I add she was afro-amer. which I think had some weight to her understanding.

[equeen]

Hope you ladies don't mind me posting to your board, but I can relate to the topic at hand. I recently volunteered at a BGLO's philanthropic funtion, and they were kind enough to give all the volunteers T-shirts comemmorating the event. Not that I don't want to be associated with volunteerism, but I don't think it would be right for me to wear that T-shirt, because it has their letters on it. Their sisterhood is small, as is mine....and I would not want any confusion to results amongst their sorors or my sisters because i wore their something with their letters.

Just my 2 cents worth.

[Soror Pinkacres]

Now this is a good one... I am trying to think what I would have done. Without a doubt I would have approached the lady and inquired into her membership, but that attitude that she responded with would have took me for a loop. She may have acted like your enlightnment on the message behind the t-shirt would not deter her from wearing it, but I guarantee she will be conscious of where she wears it from now on!

[tickledpink]

I agree with Soror Pinkacres. We'll charge her answering "yes" to being an AKA to ignorance... but she has now been educated. I think her response to you about the shirt afterward was a defense mechanism because she does not understand the depth of what our sorority means to us. However, I do believe that she will think twice about her responses and about wearing that shirt so openly. Question: did the shirt have our colors in it?

[This message has been edited by tickledpink (edited April 20, 2000).]

[Asia2000]

Yeah, you guys have to understand that to people that are ignorant to the greek world, those letters mean nothing. I know plenty of people who just don't "get" the whole "greek thing." They really don't respect the deep bonds created and just how much deep meaning three simple letters can have for one person.Before I got to college I was the same way. What was all this fuss about? I had only seen the dumb/slutty sterotype of a sorority girl and wanted nothing to do with it. But I was completely turned around when I got into the college/greek environment and finally saw what these women (in all sororities) are about. Now I am working my tail off trying to become part of an organization I now respect and love.

[onesavvydiva]

Hello err'body...
In response, It was a white shirt with green letters on it. And I do agree, she didn't understand the immensity of what those 3 letters stood for, to her it was just a comfortable shirt. HOwever it is somewhat foreign to me that one who,(after speaking with her I found that she was a Senior, ready to graduate and attend grad school), being to far into collegiate life, would have no concept of what a sorority means. Granted she was a caucasian, but don't the GLO's take offense to one who poses as one of their own??? Like I said, since I am not a member, I didn't feel the need to enlighten her, just suggest, but I just really wanted to say...."Girl you betta not do that...you know not what you do!!" Like AKAtude said, why would you profess to be something you aren't...she claimed that she just got tired of people asking her so she just started saying yes, but still the whole situation was pretty confusing to me.


Anyway I said I was going to limit myself to one post per week until after finals!!! HA!! Yeah right, 1 post a day is more like it, this is addictive!!!

[pink bunny]

I had a similiar experience at a step show where me and some Sorors approached a White Woman wearing para, we were polite and asked her to join our AKA section and she acted liked she did not want to be bothered or was afraid of us. Till this day i still do not believe that she is an AKA, i guess she found a shirt left in the laundry room and was like o this is cute well....