U. of Alabama seeks help in desegregating Greek life

[FuzzieAlum]

These recommendations are kind of odd. Not every sorority does require references, for starters. And legacies are only important at some schools - I met only one rushee who was an AXD legacy the entire time I was in college. So, no, the legacies weren't keeping anyone out at my school.

So, yes, legacies are important at U of A. Somehow, I don't think that abolishing legacy policies at XYZ will prevent the dear old moms and grandmas from perpetuating the legacy system - they'll just do it out of national's sight.

And all the national policies in the world don't change the fact that many African American women aren't rushing NPC sororities at that school. It seems naive to think that masses of African American women will be like, "Did you hear? Legacies are getting cut left and right! Now is the chance for us to rush, because that was all that was holding us back!"

I'm willing to bet that if you look around the U of A campus, outside of the Greek system, you'll find the same level of segregation. Greeks aren't that different from the rest of campus. If the administrators want integration, maybe they should work on a slightly larger scale.

[pialpha92]

Originally posted by sigmagrrl
I'd like to offer my opinion based on my personal experiences. I found that, as an African American woman who chose to join an NPC, I got more crap and resistance from OTHER AFRICAN-AMERICAN WOMEN than from Caucasians! I was called an Uncle Tom, an Oreo, I was spat at, you name it. So, my thinking is that other African American women might join NPC groups if they didn't fear getting ostracized and harassed. I didn't let it stop me and I wish other women who chose to question another woman's choice would remember that it's really none of their business, to be brutally honest!

I think you have a very good point here. In 92, at my campus when an African American woman chose to go through fall recruitment and eventually pledged she received threats and was extensively harrased by some members of the NPHC organizations on our campus (I do not mean to imply that all NPHC groups would act in such a way - so please do not take offense).
Our chapter happened to pledge an African American member that same semester and sadly she encountered the same problems. Luckily I don't believe current NPC members are receiving the same treatment but it is sad when it does happen. A lot in this issue will depend on the climate of the campus regardless of any policies regarding legacies, etc.

[moe.ron]

same thing happen to one of my brother. While he was pledging, this one dude look at him pledging and said "What a waste of a good black man." I herd that and I got pissed. Fortunately I was a very good friend of the President of his fraternity and told him about it, how I don't appreciate any of my guys being told they were a waste. President told me he'll take care of it, and the next day the guy appologized to us. Which is cool, cause despite his offence, he was man enough to take the brunt of his action.

[phisig4life]

Maybe my school is doing things backward. We currently have 4 sororities (3 nat. 1 loc) and 3 frats (2 nat. and 1 loc). our school is made up of primarily white students, however we have a growing number of minortities, and most of those are african-american. My chapter is fairly diverse considering the mix on campus, but the other chapters (especially the frats) are primarily white. Many AA non-greeks have expressed the feeling that they would go greek if they were better represented in the greek system. Several AA greeks are working together w/ AA non-greeks to bring AA sororities and frats to our school. We feel that having AA glo's on campus will only strengthen greek life here. Are we wrong?

[Honeykiss1974]

To add my 2 cents:

If NPC sororities want to increase their "minority" population (for lack of a better phrase) then members, especially alumni members should be more visible.

For example, I can remember in high school, it wasn't uncommon to see on an african american teacher's desk an XYZ, Inc mug, pen, or something that displayed their affiliation. Small things like would initiate questions and hence, discussion would start.

For my non-african american teachers, I never saw any of that. I am sure that majority of them were in a sorority/fraternity members, but they never "showed" it, so to speak.

I think this can be very important, especially when a student admires their teacher and wants to immulate their path to success (which may include joining their sorority/fraternity once they get to college).

Maybe this is an area that NPC sororites could concentrate on...more alumni visibility.

[sugar and spice]

Originally posted by Honeykiss1974
To add my 2 cents:

If NPC sororities want to increase their "minority" population (for lack of a better phrase) then members, especially alumni members should be more visible.

For example, I can remember in high school, it wasn't uncommon to see on an african american teacher's desk an XYZ, Inc mug, pen, or something that displayed their affiliation. Small things like would initiate questions and hence, discussion would start.

For my non-african american teachers, I never saw any of that. I am sure that majority of them were in a sorority/fraternity members, but they never "showed" it, so to speak.

Maybe this is an area that NPC sororites could concentrate on...more alumni visibility.

Agreed -- it seems like since NPHC groups are less focused on "the college experience," and more focused on the lifetime GLO experience, they're more visible. Most people, when they think of NPC sororities, think of only the college aspect of it.

[Munchkin03]

Originally posted by Sistermadly
But you were accepted, right? Isn't that the most important thing?

That wasn't the point that I was trying to make, although I appreciate where you're coming from. Let's say that I could go through recruitment at one of these schools as a student, unbeknownst to anyone that I'm actually an initiated member--just to see how far I could go and how I would be treated. I sincerely doubt that I would have been selected by the chapters of my organization at other universities even though I obviously meet the membership criteria. Isn't there something inherently wrong with that?

Another reason African-American women may not be as willing to join NPC groups--you're not always accepted with open arms by other chapters in other regions! I'm applying to some graduate schools in the South, and I would love to be an advisor at one of those chapters--but would they have me? The concern about rejection from a sister--or an entire chapter-- could be too much to bear.

[Honeykiss1974]

Originally posted by Munchkin03

Another reason African-American women may not be as willing to join NPC groups--you're not always accepted with open arms by other chapters in other regions! I'm applying to some graduate schools in the South, and I would love to be an advisor at one of those chapters--but would they have me? The concern about rejection from a sister--or an entire chapter-- could be too much to bear.

Good point. A friend of mine (who is AfAm) from high school joined a small chapter KAT (it was a small college too). She stated that she one of the reasons that she joined was because she felt comfortable being in a small, close-knit group of women.
That may also be a factor as to why there are no minorities joining very large chapters of NPC groups (such as U of AL). Regardless of race, when you join an org, you want to feel comfortable with EVERY sister, and not just 5 out of 120.

[Sistermadly]

Originally posted by Munchkin03
I'm applying to some graduate schools in the South, and I would love to be an advisor at one of those chapters--but would they have me? The concern about rejection from a sister--or an entire chapter-- could be too much to bear.

Maybe I just feel differently because I don't assume that everyone is obligated to like me just because we share Fraternal bonds. It would be a sad thing if an Alpha Phi "rejected" me because of my colour, but you know what? That's her problem - she's missing out on so much by limiting herself, and rather than feeling hurt or angry, I'd pity her because she lives such a narrowly prescribed life. Her bigotry doesn't make me any less a member.

If you decide to go to a graduate school in the South and the collegians at your school 'reject' you, it doesn't make you any less an Alpha Chi. I'm sure there are other chapters in the immediate area who would welcome the chance to have such an amazing woman advise their chapter. When one door closes, another opens elsewhere.

(Come to think of it, I would love to see an experiment where women of colour go through rush as a "mole" in southern schools just to see what would happen. Perhaps it can be used for Fraternity education purposes?)

[GammaPhiBabe]

I would love to see an experiment where women of colour go through rush as a "mole" in southern schools just to see what would happen.

I understand the sentiment behind this idea, but don't you think it would hurt more than it would help? First, the "mole" wouldn't be as enthusiastic about rush as a regular rushee because she wouldn't be taking it seriously. So, she might be dropped simply because she might not exude an air of really wanting to be there. Second, if she did trick all the houses and get a bid, she would be taking away a spot from someone who might really want one. Third, when the initiated members found out that they had offered a spot on their bid list to someone who didn't actually want a bid, don't you think that it would raise their suspicions in the future about other Af-Am women who might actually want to take part in these organizations?

There are some people who believe that Melody Twilley was a mole who went through rush because she was encouraged to do so by a particularly anti-greek professor at the U of AL. I don't know if that's true, but it could be.

I don't remember who mentioned meeting Melody during rush, but I met her as well and I agree with the reasons given as to why she did not receive a bid. She was older than 99% of the other PNMs and she was not very nice to the sisters in my house.

I also wanted to add that I just got back from a leadership conference in Atlanta and I met a couple of African American GPhiBs. I don't think that it would be any big deal if you wanted to be an advisor to a Southern chapter of your sorority. Most of us Southern girls aren't nearly as shallow as some of the people here seem to think we are.

[Sistermadly]

If I thought it would hurt, I wouldn't have suggested it.

But seriously - if a woman who is already an initiated member of a sorority goes through the rush process, I think it could be very beneficial, because she knows from the inside out what the process is like, and can offer suggestions to her sisters about areas that they could improve on (like for instance, diversity outreach). Because she's a member of the organization, maybe the sisters who are resistant to change might take her suggestions to heart more than they would an "outsiders"... does that make sense?

But then, I'm a head-in-the-clouds "I love everybody" type, so I realize that my views aren't exactly realistic.

[FuzzieAlum]

I would imagine, in a case like this, where the officials are eager to desegregate, the Greek Life office could easily enough accommodate a mole without screwing up the numbers. I'm not sure how I feel about the idea, but I think it could be done without denying someone else a bid.

[KappaKittyCat]

Agreed. It's easy enough not to count people in quota-- we do that with seniors and with foriegn students who are here on one-year programs.

And don't just assume that your sisters will automatically like you if you're both of the same race.

[SxyDeltaGam]

I'm an AA women in a NPC sorority and I have received a lot of crap from others in NPHC orgs. The only instance I've received support is from my closest friends who are Zeta's and Delta's at other schools. They sent me gifts for initiation and stayed at our house to experience what they called the "other half of greek life." On campus with people who don't know me I get dirty looks when I wear my letters and it makes me feel bad. It's as if people assume I think I'm "white" because of my choice of sorority. I think if people didn't assume things and got to know me they would understand my decision more.

[GPhiBLtColonel]

...I founded an alum panhel association here (just south of Atlanta) almost two years ago. We have roughly 100 dues paid members representing 18 of the NPC sororities. We have done community service that we have tried to get publicized in the local paper...or even just get meeting info in the south metro section of the Atlanta Journal Constitution...it just does not happen except in the freebie, driveway papers...BUT........I see articles and notices all the time for the NPHC groups in the area and their efforts for this activity or that fundraiser etc...really is irksome!
We are not letting the media ignore us though and we'll keep pushing for publicity, but it is Not easy!