Quote:
Originally Posted by TSteven
You may be right.
Currently, The University of Kentucky has the Inter-Greek Programming Assembly (IGPA) which regulates and schedules all programming that is sponsored for the UK Greek Community. IGPA also helps to unify the Greek Governing Councils of the Interfraternity Council (IFC), the Pan-Hellenic Council (PHC), and the Panhellenic Council (PC). And the IGPA coordinates all joint-programming efforts of IFC, PHC, and PC.
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The IGPA is not effective in anyways to bridge the gap between black and white greeks. Having been a the past president of the National Pan-Hellenic Council at UK and attending some of these meetings, it does not effectively unify anyone. You can put all the flyers you want in a mailbox or even have black greeks do a Greek tour but that still isn't going to get whites to come to black events and vice versa. At the end of the day, the two will always be separated.
I don't necessarily see the separation as a means of color but because the cultures and methods of operation of the two are COMPLETELY different. Our membership intakes is different, our programs are different, our rituals(both secret and non-secret) are different as well as many other things. Because black greeks are smaller in number compared to their white counterparts, blacks greeks are often pressured to assimilate into the practices of white greeks. I can recall many times filling out forms and speaking with Dean West on matters that are not applicable to Black Greeks.
When I was working with Student Affairs to work on a means of bridging a gap, there was so much talk and not enough action. So my fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha (who has been at UK since April 1, 1965) started the Stomp-A-Palooza show as well as ate dinner and many of the white sorority houses. Although all events were successful, yet the seperation still persists. There are numerous white greeks at UK who don't even know that they are historically BGLOs at UK. Like I said before, we have been there since 1965 and Alpha Kappa Alpha and Delta Sigma Theta (chartered on the same day) have been there since May 9, 1975.
From reading the brief article, I just wonder what means will they try different. The person whom the article opens with is not even Greek so how would she know about issues that are relative to this venture? I am not an advocate of segregation but considering the histories and cultures of the two groups, they should remain separate. I just find it hard to believe that Becky Sue, from a wealthy souther white family will join a historically black sorority who sponsors programs to combat African American Student Rentention; it's simply not going to happen!
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