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Black greek organizations unfairly treated
Jason Lemon
Contributing Columnist
Okla State Univ
While growing up black in American society, I have always heard how blacks are unequal to whites, whites run the country, whites discriminate against blacks, and a lot more. Even though I heard these things growing up, in my late teenage years I came to the conclusion it was all blown out of proportion.
Growing up I have never felt racially discriminated against, especially not at OSU until I discovered an event that happened on Oct. 2 of last year.
On Oct. 2 of last year a dozen fights broke out because no security was present to diffuse the situation at an Alpha Phi Alpha party at the Student Union, and a non-student was found carrying a gun.
That event led to the OSU administration indefinitely banning all eight black greeks organizations from holding parties at the Union.
On the night of that party the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity was put into a no-win situation. According to Corey Cox, Alpha Phi Alpha president in 2004-2005, security notified university administrators that they cancelled sometime Thursday or Friday and did not notify him until 9p.m. Saturday, while the party was scheduled for 10p.m. Saturday.
Canceling a party on an hour notice when you have people coming from Norman, Tulsa, Texas and even Arkansas could have made things a whole lot worse. “I don’t believe that you can cancel a party scheduled for 10p.m. at 9p.m. when people are on there way from Norman Tulsa, and even some of my frat brothers from Texas and Arkansas,” Cox said, “There very well may have been a riot outside with the over 300 people arriving in the next 2 hours.”
The university administrators are at fault themselves. If security notified administration on Thursday or Friday that they cancelled, why did the administration wait until an hour before the party to notify the host of the party?
If Cox would have been notified at the same time as the university administrators, the party could have been properly cancelled ahead of time.
After all, university administrators allowed the party to continue knowing security cancelled and also withheld the information until an hour before the party.
This ban really hurts the black greek organizations because this is the main source of their income.
“What people don’t understand is that our livelihood is based on our social functions,” Steve Redd, president of the OSU National Pan-Hellenic Council said. “I would say it’s where 90 percent of our operating budgets come from.”
I am glad to see that the administration is looking for other fund-raising options, such as possibly allocating money from the Student Government Association.
Is the university administration sending the right message by banning all eight black greek organizations from having parties at the Union?
By lumping all eight black greek organizations together, the administration is singling out black people and sending a message saying that since they are infamous for having problems at their parties, all black greeks should be banned.
Isn’t that racial profiling? Instead of lumping together all eight black greeks, it is better for the administration to ban the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity since it was their party, ban all parties in the Union until a new policy is reached, or realize a lot of fault is on them for withholding the fact security cancelled?
Since this ban was put into effect last October, OSU has found a new head football coach, a new athletic director and a new dean, yet this issue still isn’t resolved.
I am not saying this issue should have the same priority, but I do believe it could have been resolved a lot quicker, especially since the solution is simple: In order to have a party at the union, security must be present.
Growing up I have never been once to play the race card, but this definitely rubs me the wrong way.
Jason Lemon is a contributing columnist for The Daily O’Collegian. He can be reached via e-mail at
lsofresh03@yahoo.com
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