Alpha Phi Smoking Gun Just Published on IG

[ASTalumna06]

Originally Posted by Sen's Revenge

So question.... (and you know me, so you know I am coming from a place of understanding and not disrespect)

Why should looks figure into it at all?

For example, what if there is a category that says whether or not a PNM has a professional or put-together hair style.

Then a black or biracial girl comes in with dreadlocks.

What happens when Karen with the clipboard decides to take points off because she has never seen a black hairstyle?

Or a Muslim woman who covers?

I guess what I am saying as an outsider to the process is that what Alpha Phi is alleged to be doing doesn't seem that much different from what the system does as a whole. It's just that one way is codified and organized and the other way is more casual.

Clearly not every chapter of every NPC group has 6' tall, model-skinny, blonde-hair-down-to-there women. The vast majority have members that are different shapes, sizes, skin color, etc.

I attended my convention last year. Do we have some chapters that may put more of an emphasis on looks? Sure. But that's not a directive from our organization's leadership. And one of those chapters you could argue were the super pretty ones also took home one of our most highly-regarded awards that a chapter can receive, so...

To me, if that's how a chapter wants to build their membership, they can have at it. But I'd argue that many "picture perfect" chapters are not sacrificing the grades, extra-curriculars, volunteer experience, personality, etc. just so they can have some pretty faces in the crowd. Because if you have a chapter filled with grade risks who never volunteer and skirt all of their responsibilities, that chapter won't last very long.

Ultimately, it all boils down to this:

Originally Posted by 33girl

If, as described in the Beta Delta letter, you have a woman come through who is beloved by everyone in the chapter who knows her, has extracurricular involvement and good grades - and your national is telling you to kick her to the curb because her looks are inadequate- that’s what everyone is saying is completely wrong.

Originally Posted by SigmaCat

I get that many chapters abuse personal appearance standards as a way to quietly block people with disabilities, people of color, non-Christians, and people of size, but for an international organization to be leading that charge? Yikes.

To think that an international organization that is supposed to be empowering women is instead teaching its young collegiate members to reduce other women down to nothing but their looks is disgusting.

However, I'm not sure that much can be done about it by us "outsiders".

Originally Posted by 33girl

The wisest tack for NPC to take would be to definitively show that A Phi really is cheating or otherwise disobeying rules at rush (an NPC function) rather than criticize their methods of membership selection (an individual org function) and discipline them in some way because of the former.

Interfering with an individual organization’s MS policies (no matter how repugnant) is a bell that can’t be un-rung.

And I'm sure NPC doesn't want to touch this with a ten foot pole for the very reason you've laid out here. And does it truly benefit them to try and track down rush infractions? Will that ultimately lead to a change in membership selection? Probably not.

To me, the only thing that will make any significant change is if there is a type of revolt by the Alpha Phi membership at large.