Easiest solution: A racial quota system for every sorority for 10 years. Will wipe out a lot of the bad history, assuming kids now (or 10 years in the future) are alright.
It IS productive. It is of great importance to understand the exclusionary foundations of Greek life. Many current traditions and practices are based on that history.
Many students and college administrators would love to get rid of fraternities and sororities. If those that want to keep them don’t carefully examine the past to understand the basis of the objections, they will never be able to address them or appease this growing movement.
When a patient visits a doctor and is having symptoms, the first thing the doctor asks about is a medical history. When a company is in distress, consultants come in and look at past practices. If damage has occurred in a body, organization, or other system, rehashing the history is critically important to fixing it.
4 Likes
The names may be similar and confusing, but:
- National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) = historically White sororities
- National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) = historically Black sororities and fraternities
1 Like
Given the not-so-old history, I think the term fits. And I didn’t say white supremacy was the only thing that shaped these institutions at this school, but to deny it played a large role denies reality.
As for your question of “how should we go forward,” that seems largely up to these institutions. I can’t say I envy their task given the situation they have created for themselves.
2 Likes
I don’t know if by the ‘institutions’ you mean the sororities or the universities.
At Alabama, 11% of the students are black. Just using last year’s freshman class of 8000, that means about 880, or about 440 women, are black. If every single one went though NPC rush, and every single one joined an NPC house (leaving none for the NPHC rush which follows the big NPC rush), that still wouldn’t make much of a dent in membership and wouldn’t make the NPCs look less white. Since only 45 black women went through NPC rush last August, I really doubt the 440 are going to go through the process this August. The numbers are a little more balanced for Hispanic, Asian and other minority groups for NPC membership, but those groups don’t have an alternative Greek life like the black women do with D9.
Alabama needs to admit more black students in order for the Greek system(s) to be more integrated.
It seems inaccurate to suggest that, absent increased enrollment, the sororities themselves have no room to improve the situation. In 2022 there were only 56 African American females in the these all the NPC sororities, out around 2000 female African American students, and there were only 225 African American NPHC students.
(As an aside, I am not sure it is sound to assume that only 50% of African American undergrads at Alabama are female, given the gender imbalance (57/43) at Alabama and the dearth of African American males in higher education, generally. If you have actual numbers that’d be interesting.)
2 Likes
Finally watched “Bama Rush.”
Definitely not very controversial; but really seemed like a vehicle for the director to share her life struggles and insecurities.
It also appeared that two of the girls, Halliday and Makayla, had no real interest in joining a sorority. Did the director pay for the girls to have a Rush Consultant?
And the last scene swimming in the lake was kind of cringy.
2 Likes
Which is important context, too. Alabama is about 27% black. Either Alabama (the state) is doing a poor job preparing them for college, or Alabama (the university) is doing a poor job convincing them that they will have a good experience at the PWI flagship, or both. That’s the landscape within which NPC sororities are recruiting into their very expensive chapters.
2 Likes
Just curious since there is so much talk about race with sororities. Can a non-african American join a D9 sorority?
1 Like
Yes.
The reality is that just because something is open to all doesn’t mean all would choose to partake.
It may be a black female has zero interest in a white sorority - and for that reason alone, has not attempted to join…vs being racist.
This is such a complicated subject that unfortunately our great great great great grandkids will still be discussing.
2 Likes
You probably mean NPC, not “non NPC”, sororities, since the NPC ones are the historically White ones. The NPHC is the national organization for the historically Black sororities and fraternities.
There is a single thread for discussion of race in college. This is not that thread.
I have also deleted assorted posts that are not related to the topic of the thread.
3 Likes