<p>The Crimson article explains the power of social segregation by this freshman by-invitation-only club, and how the College administration provides its real estate and official recognition: thecrimson.com/article/2014/10/15/harvard-elitism-hasty-pudding/?page=single</p>
<p>Membership is determined by student's boarding school, family money and zip codes.</p>
<p>Improving the link:</p>
<p><a href=“Harvard's Sloppy Elitism | Opinion | The Harvard Crimson”>Harvard's Sloppy Elitism | Opinion | The Harvard Crimson;
<p>Some excellent research by The Crimson, however it left me wondering about the ethnic makeup of the Hasty Pudding Club. Harvard itself is a fairly diverse place - white Americans make up less than half the undergraduate population. Does the Hasty Pudding Club echo this diversity, or are the members primarily white Americans? I suspect I know the answer, although I can hope I am wrong.</p>
<p>Thanks for fixing that address, @sherpa!</p>
<p>The club is much whiter than Harvard.</p>
<p>@BldrDad I was in the club. It’s pretty white. But the good news is no one really cares about the pudding so it doesn’t matter.</p>
<p>There’s an interesting article in The Crimson today discussing a recent meeting of the new Dean of Harvard College with representatives of the “unrecognized social clubs”. It seems he used the occasion to question them on inclusivity and diversity.</p>
<p><a href=“Behind Closed Doors, Khurana Met with Unrecognized Social Clubs | News | The Harvard Crimson”>http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2014/10/29/khurana-social-club-meeting/</a> </p>
<p>I think this fall into the “much ado about nothing” category. Hasty Pudding is an anachronism. Charming in a weird old-school way, but the lack of diversity isn’t because the Club doesn’t want kids from less affluent backgrounds, its because the only punches who are likely to accept are those whose grandparents speak lovingly of it. The club isn’t going to go after kids that think its silly.</p>
<p>I think Rakesh has good ideas (re: the Crimson article) but it will be hard for him to do anything since the college ultimately has no control over the clubs</p>
<p>Hasty Pudding social club is part of Harvard real estate and financial support, unlike the final clubs. That is why The Crimson, and Harvard students, question the club’s ability to hold on to the discriminatory selection process.</p>
<p>@danstearns- there are plenty of freshmen who would like an invitation, but never have a chance. By the time they hear about the club, the invitations are already decided.</p>
<p>@fauve I don’t know why you think the pudding gets support from the university, but its clubhouse is most definitely not university property. The old clubhouse (now Farkas Hall) was bought by the university when the club had financial problems in the 90s.</p>
<p>I gleaned the information about university support partially from this article in The Crimson:</p>
<p><a href=“Hasty Pudding Cuts Ribbon on New Clubhouse | News | The Harvard Crimson”>http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2014/1/27/hasty-pudding-clubhouse-dedication/</a></p>
<p>The Dean of Faculty of Arts and Sciences Michael D. Smith and three other deans were in attendance at the opening of the new Hasty Pudding Institute at 96 Winthrop Street (the old Tommy Doyle’s pub). The Theatricals still use the Farkas Hall on 10-12 Holyoke for performances.</p>
<p>The article says the social club is part of the Institute building…is there something I’m missing? I’d be delighted to hear the college has cut all ties. </p>
<p>The pudding either bought or leased the building (I actually don’t know) after Tommy Doyle’s moved out, but I’m fairly certain it’s not Harvard-owned land. </p>
<p><a href=“http://www.masslandrecords.com/MiddlesexSouth/”>http://www.masslandrecords.com/MiddlesexSouth/</a>
search for 96 Winthrop St</p>
<p>But actually it was really weird that Dean Smith and others were there, considering that the university sometimes pretends the club doesn’t exist. The Institute contains the Kroks and Theatricals as well (which is how I was affiliated, God knows I would never be in the club otherwise), which are both recognized student groups. So there is a tension there because the club gets to tout us (the performers) as its artistic and philanthropic side. </p>
<p>But obviously not all ties have been cut - see the article above about Rakesh meeting with representatives.</p>
<p>**
Edit: I didn’t read my own link carefully. One of the entries for the property says that the Pudding is leasing the building.</p>