Alabama recruitment fall-out

[lake]

Ugh! Okay I just read the second link. Very depressing!

[AnchorAlumna]

That article is full of misinformation.

[Bamarox]

I am just curious, what part of that article misrepresents what went on? I also think that the alumnae are getting a great deal of the blame thrown their way.
I think that if you read the article, you very quickly realize that there are active chapter members who are not on board with diversifying their membership. I think a lot of attitudes must change before a racially diverse member feels welcome.

[KDCat]

Originally Posted by Bamarox

I am just curious, what part of that article misrepresents what went on? I also think that the alumnae are getting a great deal of the blame thrown their way.
I think that if you read the article, you very quickly realize that there are active chapter members who are not on board with diversifying their membership. I think a lot of attitudes must change before a racially diverse member feels welcome.

The first reports in other organizations at Alabama specifically stated that some alumnae blocked voting on PNMs who weren't white. That's why alums are getting a lot of blame. There were collegians who were complaining specifically that they would have LOVED to have a specific PNM as a member, but the alumnae said "No."

There are active members who are copping an attitude. However, that attitude may have as much to do with being in "Big Trouble" as being unwilling to welcome an AA PNM. And nobody likes having change handed down from above, and that's how this is going to go.

I've worked with some really diverse chapters. I don't think that the college age women at Alabama are THAT different from college age women at other campuses in values or outlook. It's not not 1954, it's 2014.

[Tropical_Dancer]

It seems to me that the article's author had a specific viewpoint that she wanted to support and found everything she could to support her viewpoint. Activist journalism 101.

I think the better story would have been to find these AA women who pledged NPC sororities after the president issued COB period and write about their experience. Even better would be to follow them during next year's formal recruitment.

I think KD's approach is probably similar to all of the other NPC groups on campus. I also think we don't know the full story and we will never know the full story.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by KDCat

1. The Alabama problem isn't just one chapter's problem. It's a pattern across multiple NPC groups. Shutting down one chapter isn't going to solve the problem. This isn't about one or two or ten chapters misbehaving, as much as it is about a system is stuck in a historical pattern of institutionalized racism. Other schools have transitioned away from those patterns. This one can, too.

2. Insofar as my sorority historically helped build a system that is neck-deep in institutionalized racism and segregation, I think we should stick around and work on the problem. Walking away is easy. Working on the problem is hard and uncomfortable. KD wasn't mentioned in the first set of articles as a problem child. Now that National KD is working on the issue, National KD is getting flak. It's uncomfortable. It's also the right thing to do.

So very true.

[SoCalGirl]

I read the buzzfeed article a few days ago. I thought it seemed fair. I felt like it didn't blame the sororities specifically because it acknowledged that they're not in a bubble. Race issues are still alive throughout the school, state, region, etc.

I appreciated that so many of the groups and members followed HQ rules and deferred to HQ PR teams, including those that could come out looking better than worse.

I don't get why people can't believe that sororities don't track race. I've never indicated my race on any form for my sorority. Honestly, if they did, the less diverse chapters probably would have had some heat a long time ago.

Alabama is making progress. Iceberg slow but still.

The chapter members need to be open and there needs to be a pool of PNMs that can help improve the diversity. If formal rush continues to have few to no non-whites and chapters max out quota/total during formal, they'll continue to be white. More chapters need to actively seek out diversity during COB and Panhel needs to actively attract diversity to the formal rush PNM pool.

[AZTheta]

KDCat, I support Kappa Delta wholeheartedly, as a Panhellenic sister, just as I support ALL GLOs (NPC, NPHC, and so on) who are striving to do the best they can. Before people take the splinter out of KD's eye, they need to take the forest out of their own. And they need to shut the hell up. Either work to solve the problem, or get the eff out of the way.

for the love of Mike, I don't live in that world, and I would no more judge it than I would want you guys to be judging the world I live in. There's rampant racism in Arizona. Actually I think it's well established that Arizona in general is batshit crazy. Please. Don't wind me up any tighter than I already am.

Let me know what I can do for your fine organization, and I'll do it. Your Panhellenic sister, AZTheta.

[Hartofsec]

Originally Posted by Tropical_Dancer

It seems to me that the article's author had a specific viewpoint that she wanted to support and found everything she could to support her viewpoint. Activist journalism 101.

I completely agree.

I didn't see the relevance to the race issue of much of what the article used to negatively depict the Greek system. To a casual reader unfamiliar with the system, it might leave the impression that the University shoulders the cost of the houses. The University is not being unfair or discriminatory by not providing housing to an org with 14 members.

I didn't find the part about cost relevant either -- other than to perpetuate the stereotype of Greeks as elitist rich kids. But the author's cherry pickin' did make me chuckle:

“It’s tradition and it’s a way of keeping resources amongst people who already have resources,” Hughey said. “It’s a club. And it’s a club that costs a great deal of money to join and be active in.”

According to the UA Panhellenic website, the average out-of-house living fees (meals and chapter fees) are $3,330 per semester, and the average in-house fees are $5,933 per semester.

And the 2013-2014 "in-dorm" fees? $5978.

I think the better story would have been to find these AA women who pledged NPC sororities after the president issued COB period and write about their experience. Even better would be to follow them during next year's formal recruitment.

Agree. These are the girls I would like to hear from as well. The interview with the active really didn't cover anything relevant.

[Jhawkie]

Originally Posted by Hartofsec

I didn't see the relevance to the race issue of much of what the article used to negatively depict the Greek system. To a casual reader unfamiliar with the system, it might leave the impression that the University shoulders the cost of the houses.

Well, yes, many have that impression because the university leases the land to chapters for really low amounts.

[Hartofsec]

Originally Posted by Jhawkie

Well, yes, many have that impression because the university leases the land to chapters for really low amounts.

Then how is not leasing land to an org with 14 members relevant to race (or some form of institutional discrimination, as spun by the article)?

The University did help:

From the article:

In 2007, UA welcomed multicultural sorority Sigma Lambda Gamma. Today, the chapter is no longer in existence — fall 2013 was its last active semester.

Recent UA alumnae Brittney Knox, a black woman and graduate business student in North Carolina, once served as president of Sigma Lambda Gamma. When she joined in 2009, the chapter had 14 members.

According to Knox, the administration allocated them an adviser and helped with funding, but it wasn’t enough to fight low enrollment numbers. “You have to have so many members before you’re able to be established on campus with an actual physical house,” Knox said.

[33girl]

There's also the issue of, if a black woman goes through NPC rush and doesn't get a bid, does that affect her chances of being considered for an NPHC group if she then decides she wants to pursue one of them?

[33girl]

The quote above re SLG just solidifies the incorrect assumption that a sorority = the house. If the members honestly shared that attitude, the demise of their chapter is no one's fault but theirs.

[Low D Flat]

And the 2013-2014 "in-dorm" fees? $5978.

The comparison is important at schools where most members can choose to live in. At Alabama, even for the chapters with the big new houses, most members don't have the option, and only four of the big houses are operating. A fair number of members never get to live in at all (the sophomore class is bigger than the house capacity for the biggest houses, plus the officers have to live in). So the vast majority of members are paying the out-of-house fees, on top of their living expenses, for either three or four years. It's a significant cost.

[Jhawkie]

Perhaps people perceive that there is a bias to the large, historically white Greek organizations because there has been a history of racial discrimination yet Univeristy of Alabamacontinues to lease them the land at a very low cost.

If the school is willing to lease land to other organizations, that is good. But it doesn't negate the fact that an organization is still a getting low-cost lease and has a history of discriminating against others. The right doesn't cancel out the wrong.

Even within an organization (even on Kappa Delta's own Facebook page!) there is discussion about how certain chapters are permitted to engage in behavior that would be grounds for chapter closure elsewhere in the country.

Whether you think this article is unfair or not, the story isn't finished, and a lot of history is left to be written. All eyes are on you Alabama.