Is it me or has the importance or relevance of Black fraternities and sororities become more important than ever, especially in the AUC? Even more, has their influence and power at elite HBCUs like Morehouse, Spelman, Howard and Hampton changed what it means to a black college student? I think so; and interestingly enough, the one aspect that makes them important is their committment to service of mankind.
I am not Greek, but what I have seen is how much deferrence is given to Black greeks. For instance, SGA positions are filled with black and gold, pink and green, crimson and cream, purple and gold and blue and white. Why? There is something to be said of the correlation between being greek and being a student. Since most, if not all, fraternities and sororities seek to epitomize scholarship, committment to service, and the furthering of their respective founders' visions and missions, they in fact commit themselves to being professional, involved leaders on their campuses. That's why the "sphere of influence" continues to grow even to freshmen. Moreover, as a freshmen RA, I have had talks with freshmen who come to college with the idea of "crossing the burning sands into Greekdom." Why? They have seen an Omega hop or a Kappa shimmey? No, they aspire so early because they see the influence and relevance and wealth of opportunity with being greek.
I know some say being greek at HBCUs is counterproductive and in fact, the complete antithesis of brother and sisterhood due to its exclusive dynamic. Additionally, they opine that recent incidents of hazing on college campuses have tarnished the legacy and importance of greek fraternities and sororities. While I agree that the past "dark periods" in each organization's history go against their original purpose, their importance remains unchanged. In fact, their importance is increased to rebuild that which seemingly has been torn down. I see more Greeks doing community service, excelling in the classroom and going off after college with a network unlike any other moreso than non-greeks. They bequeath the traditional idea of black communal ties of family and cooperative self development.Thus, if the greater community benefits from the work of a brother or soror and one life is changed positively after encountering a greek, then the fraternity and sorority has served and fulfilled its goal.
While it goes without saying that not all greeks do well, for me the work I have seen them do with uplifting each other and the mission and vision of their respective founders' and institutions forces one to say: yes, Black Greekdom is more relevant than ever before.
So, will you be attending Spring '08 Rush?
1 comment:
Greeks on predominately Black campuses get a great deal of slack for promoting elitism and social hierarchies. However, people often fail to realize the intricate role of Greek organizations as community service based organizations. I agree whole heartedly with Josh that Black fraternities and sororities have an influential affect on college campuses for more than just the sensationalist aspect of colors and paraphernalia. The history of all Greek organizations included in the Divine Nine (Alpha Phi Alpha, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Kappa Alpha Psi, Omega Psi Phi, Delta Sigma Theta, Phi Beta Sigma, Zeta Phi Beta, Sigma Gamma Rho, Iota Phi Theta) stem from cultural enhancement and community service. Nevertheless, I will not exclude the idea that many people reverence Greeks based on material aspects and status quos. However, the underlying influence that Greek organizations have on the community, their prevalence in executive positions, and their involvement in the community and their schools are essentially influential in cultivating others to join an organization that is inclusive of all the aforementioned characteristics.
-A. Pruitt
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