Controversy

[Jill1228]

I SO agree with you here! And you did your examples well! Because I have seen NPC chapters that are diverse in race and religion

Let's keep talking y'all! (I might be on the West Coast but you can't take the South outta me!)

Originally posted by texas*princess
Like Kristin AGD mentioned, I think the issue has to do more with individual school's chapters and not so much the overall organization.
(sorry if all the alphabets are confusing, I'm just trying to make an example )

[Munchkin03]

Originally posted by Jill1228
If it is said, "the reason minority women are not in our GLOs is because they don't sign up for rush". I wonder why?????
Unfortunately in some schools they are not exactly made to feel welcome!

This is very important. If anything, each PNM must be shown the same courtesy and respect during the process. I can only begin to imagine what my recruitment experience would have been like at one of these schools... I know I've mentioned this in another post, but I often wonder what it would be like if I could go through a Recruitment at one of those schools, just to see how differently I would be treated...I would like to hope that I would have the same courtesy and respect, but I'm realistic...

It's not simply a matter of "an organization can select whom they want," which is true...but they cannot use race as a reason for rejection, especially when they have explicit antidiscriminatory clauses for race and religion--which is what is wrong about the system. Let's not make excuses for ignorant people.

[texas*princess]

I read this in the thread What makes someone worthy of your letters?, I found some of justamom's wisdom that I think would also be appropriate here:

But, the point IS, if we all followed our Creed, we WOULDN'T have to worry about these problems. This is a living evolving condition that seems to be gaining strength. It's because some chapters, in their quest to become a "top" house, start looking at the wrong "qualities" of an individual. To put it bluntly, they buy into the wrappings of the package without knowing what's inside. It's like playing "grab bag". Recruitment, being so short, fast and furious, tends to result in GLOs grabbing the flashier box.

When the chapters start placing more emphasis on looks, OTHER chapters have to as well. I'm not saying that appearances aren't important-like it or not they are-but it has evolved to the point where within the cut sessions phrases like, "She was sooo popular in HS" (Did anyone think to ask WHY???) or "Do you know who her parents are?" becomes THE focus. Once you have this shift occur, it is almost impossible to return to the basic values the sorority was founded on. Like attracts like. So, if your chapter starts pledging girls who are only looking to get married-hooked up-party-or a 4 year vacation on Daddy's checkbook it COULD become the norm for your chapter. How can you turn THAT around? Go back to your creed. Set your standards and stick to them. You will run the risk of losing that
"pretigious" position of the "hottest" girls on campus. Then again, I am a great believer in good virtue. Maybe more than anything, it boils down to the image of the PNMs as to what THEY think is acceptable behavior. I really think a chapter needs to be very careful in who they pledge, return to their Creed raise THAT bar. BUT, unless EVERYONE did it at the same time, I doubt it would work.

[aabby757]

personally, I think justamom's wisdom would be appreciated in EVERY thread. Not just those that "apply."

[texas*princess]

I completely agree aabby757

Her comment that I reposted from the other thread seemed to suit the discussion of this thread also, so I thought I would add it here

[Aprylel21]

Justamom couldn't have said it any better. I am an African American woman in a "traditionally" white sorority. At first I did get the question of why from friends and distant member of my family, and the only thing I could think of was the sisterhood. It goes all around, no matter what sorority of any background one is in. The sisterhood of these women should be the main focus. Not only that, when I went through recruitment those women made me feel so comfortable. I didn't feel out of place at all at any time. I think it really depends on the school. I don't think I would have considered going through recruitment if I were at a big school (money does come into play). I know at GA Tech there are a couple of African American ladies in WGLO's. So maybe its not so much the size of the school that plays into the factor either.

Panhellenic love,

April

[AlphaChiCutie]

As a UGA student, I've heard from older members of my chapter that there was more the situation than just the color of the girl's skin. Many, many pnm's are released from our recruitment. It's VERY competitive. Each chapter has the right to choose members on the basis of its own criteria. Also, it's well known that if a white girl tried to join a NPHC group here, she would NEVER be admitted. Seems like a double standard if no one writes articles in TIME about that situation.

[Jill1228]

Actually, it was mentioned before. In a December 2000 issue of Ebony magazine, there was an article about Whites in NPHC groups. Great article...wish I kept the issue!

Originally posted by AlphaChiCutie
As a UGA student, I've heard from older members of my chapter that there was more the situation than just the color of the girl's skin. Many, many pnm's are released from our recruitment. It's VERY competitive. Each chapter has the right to choose members on the basis of its own criteria. Also, it's well known that if a white girl tried to join a NPHC group here, she would NEVER be admitted. Seems like a double standard if no one writes articles in TIME about that situation.

[Aprylel21]

I read that same article, it was awesome! Up until then I never heard of whites joining traditionally BGLOs. Just like it was said earlier, it all depends on the openmindness of the chapter.

[texas*princess]

Originally posted by WarEagle1918
I'm sure none of the black fraternities at Auburn would have accepted me, but they would not have been considered racist for it. There is a double standard and it isn't fair. Sorrorities in the south are extremely competitive and I'm sure race did not play a big role in the decision.

You say you're "sure" race didn't play a role in the sorority's decision, but yet you are also sure that the HBGLO's at Auburn wouldn't have accepted you and not be called racist?


Why doesn't that make sense to me?

In all honesty, the only people who will ever know if race did play a role in the sorority's decision will be the women in the room when they were discussing the pnm... so I don't know how you can be so "sure". In the articles about the UGA incident, all of them stated that a woman in that particular sorority was upset when she heard all the remarks her sister was saying. I highly doubt someone would just make something up like that for fun.

... but that's just my opinion

[WhirlwindTNX]

Originally posted by AlphaChiCutie
As a UGA student, I've heard from older members of my chapter that there was more the situation than just the color of the girl's skin. Many, many pnm's are released from our recruitment. It's VERY competitive. Each chapter has the right to choose members on the basis of its own criteria. Also, it's well known that if a white girl tried to join a NPHC group here, she would NEVER be admitted. Seems like a double standard if no one writes articles in TIME about that situation.

I'm sorry, but what are you basing that on. . .I'm guessing it's something that you heard of because there are many non-African American women in NPHC sororities. I know this because some of them are my family.

[WhirlwindTNX]

Originally posted by texas*princess
You say you're "sure" race didn't play a role in the sorority's decision, but yet you are also sure that the HBGLO's at Auburn wouldn't have accepted you and not be called racist?


Why doesn't that make sense to me?

In all honesty, the only people who will ever know if race did play a role in the sorority's decision will be the women in the room when they were discussing the pnm... so I don't know how you can be so "sure". In the articles about the UGA incident, all of them stated that a woman in that particular sorority was upset when she heard all the remarks her sister was saying. I highly doubt someone would just make something up like that for fun.

... but that's just my opinion

So true. . .

[Kristin AGD]

Most of the articles I have read said that the girl disaffiliated completely. I have to wonder why she was the only one. There are a lot of girls in those chapters at UGA. It makes me wonder if the conversation wasn't misinterpreted by this girl. The articles note that it was clear that the pnm was about to quit the rush process. And to say that their was no conversation about the one african-american out of 1000 girls would be ignorant. I am sure their was. But as Texas*Princess pointed out, only the women in that room know exactly what was said that day.

[GeekyPenguin]

Originally posted by WhirlwindTNX
I'm sorry, but what are you basing that on. . .I'm guessing it's something that you heard of because there are many non-African American women in NPHC sororities. I know this because some of them are my family.

Not at all schools - they do things differently down south.

[texas*princess]

Originally posted by Kristin AGD
Most of the articles I have read said that the girl disaffiliated completely. I have to wonder why she was the only one. There are a lot of girls in those chapters at UGA. It makes me wonder if the conversation wasn't misinterpreted by this girl. The articles note that it was clear that the pnm was about to quit the rush process. And to say that their was no conversation about the one african-american out of 1000 girls would be ignorant. I am sure their was. But as Texas*Princess pointed out, only the women in that room know exactly what was said that day.

The TIME article mentioned how other minority women of that sorority ended up leaving the chapter for other inicidents that happened that had racial tones:

http://www.time.com/time/education/a...,59389,00.html

Another student, Alana Young, a Filipino American, says she left the sorority in 1998 because of racist attitudes. She overheard a sister say she had been taught that "n_____s work in the house and Mexicans work in the yard." Young says she saw a Mexican-American member of the sorority leave a meeting in tears after the sisters overruled her objection to putting a Confederate flag on a T-shirt. Young finally quit after sorority members criticized her for giving her phone number to a black football player.