Greek Stigma

[WVU alpha phi]

I took Soc 101 my junior year and it was a predominantly freshmen class. Our teacher was young, maybe in his mid 20s, and very vocally anti-Greek. I sat with several of my sisters and we all wore letters at some point on another to class of course. He made several remarks throughout the semester about never understanding why people go Greek, Greeks only get drunk and sleep around, etc. It was disheartening in a class of 300 freshmen who may have been considering going Greek at some point. I believe he had been an undergrad at a school in the south, so I don't know if his undergrad experience or his WVU experience led him to believe this! Nevertheless, I'd be so annoyed when he made comments.

[ASTalumna06]

Originally Posted by GammaPhi88

I can;t wear letters to meetings because my coach specifically asked me not to, and I'm not allowed to wear letters when we travel either, because they say that they don't want us "badly represented".

Is there a dress code for this organization at meetings? If not, why are you being restricted from wearing your letters? Last time I checked, unless something is extremely offensive, a professor or coach has little room to say anything about what you wear.

Originally Posted by WVU alpha phi

I took Soc 101 my junior year and it was a predominantly freshmen class. Our teacher was young, maybe in his mid 20s, and very vocally anti-Greek. I sat with several of my sisters and we all wore letters at some point on another to class of course. He made several remarks throughout the semester about never understanding why people go Greek, Greeks only get drunk and sleep around, etc.

If I was in either this situation or the one of the OP, I think I would speak up. I would definitely approach the professor after class, and if the problem persisted, I would be inclined to say something during class. But either way, this would honestly make me mad.

Your professors/coaches are singling you out and making fun of you in front of your peers, and that should NEVER be the case, no matter which organization you're a part of. Imagine you're on the basketball team, and your professor says, "I don't know why anyone would join the basketball team, they all sleep around and do drugs." Would you not be just as mad? Is it still just as ridiculous as saying something negative about Greek life? Yes, it is. They're attacking your personal life choices in a situation where learning is supposed to take place.

Originally Posted by Senusret I

If you were my daughter, I would advise you to elevate your concerns to whomever the coach reports to.

Seems to me like you should be able to sit down with all parties, discuss the issue, and come to a peaceful resolution.

It seems like borderline discrimination and harassment to me.

Agreed. Like I said, this should not be happening at all, and it especially should not be brought up in meetings or in a class. How is that at all relevant to what is being taught or discussed? Talk to your coach, and talk to their supervisor if necessary.

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by ASTalumna06

Is there a dress code for this organization at meetings? If not, why are you being restricted from wearing your letters? Last time I checked, unless something is extremely offensive, a professor or coach has little room to say anything about what you wear.

True.. but pick your battles.

Fighting with a professor/coach is just not worth it when all you have to do is wear something else.

[KSUViolet06]

I only know of a couple of isolated situations in undergrad where people got flack for being greek. Most orgs were pretty receptive of greek members because they knew that greeks were known for being the involved, leader types.

I had a friend who was an honors/academic fraternity member freshman year. Well, the next year, she decided she wanted to be in a sorority as well. She went through recruitment and got a bid from my chapter. She still stayed active in the fraternity though and was even chair of a couple of committees.

Later on in the fall semester, it was time for the fraternity to give out little brothers, and she was really excited about it. She ended up not getting one and was really upset. She told me she didn't get one, and I suggested that she email the member in charge of it and ask why. She showed me the email response from the officer in charge and it said "We generally don't give little brothers to sorority members because they don't have the time for one." I was surprised by that response, because I was part of a service org myself and was allowed to take a little sister.

She called her fraternity big bro about it, and he told her something like "well, really, we can't tell members not to go greek, but we kind of discourage it." She was pretty upset that a fraternity she'd been in for a year and a half had such sentiments about greek life. So she got fed up and quit soon after.

[ASTalumna06]

Originally Posted by Kevin

True.. but pick your battles.

Fighting with a professor/coach is just not worth it when all you have to do is wear something else.

True, pick your battles. So why is the professor choosing this one?

He could leave her alone, also, and just ignore the fact that she's wearing what she wants to. If other people don't like it, too bad for them. If any professor asked me to remove my letters or not wear them because they didn't like Greek life, that's too bad for them, because there's no way I'd change my life for someone who doesn't agree with something I do. Especially if part of that something is simply wearing some funny-looking letters on a shirt.

[33girl]

If the coach is encouraging this behavior, you are definitely being harassed - especially if participation in the team is something you are doing because of the career you are going to go into and therefore you don't want to just tell him to f.o. and drop out. Do everything Senusret said.