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Is It True that Alabama Fraternities/Sororities Are Completely Segregated?
Posted on 9/15/13 at 3:39 pm
Posted on 9/15/13 at 3:39 pm
Reading and talking to folks about the Alabama sorority racial thing and I ran across this article in Total Frat Move.
LINK /
If Alabama sororities haven't had a black girl as a member since 2003 because it would destroy them socially and financially, then does that, in essence, mean that the entire Greek system at Alabama is de jure racist and is the last real holdover from the segregated South?
Is this true, or is the author just mistaken?
LINK /
quote:
The funding from these rich alumnae of varying ages likely won’t disappear simply because their sorority signs a black girl. Instead, the checks will stop coming in because the alumnae, being the amazing sisters that they are, don’t want to back a loser, er, losers. As it happens, nothing makes your sorority a bigger group of losers at Alabama than signing a black girl, just ask Alabama’s Gamma Phi Beta chapter (who I’m sure are all actually sweet girls and I’m sorry for calling you losers it’s just for the story, I swear, let’s have drinks sometime). This is from one of the Alabama sorority girls I emailed with:
Gamma Phi here is not like Mizzou’s. They’re honestly the fat girl leftover sorority…because of 2003 [when Gamma Phi bid a black girl, purportedly the last black girl to be bid at Alabama]. Their alumni basically cut all funding, everyone dropped and they’ve never recovered. So that’s another way alumni have an influence because there’s a large amount of our alumni who would cut us off if we took one too.
Why did Gamma Phi’s alumnae supposedly “cut all funding” after the actives bid a black girl in 2003? If they were donating before that, and many likely were, it doesn’t make much sense to sabotage your own investment, let alone what you consider a dear sisterhood. In that case, you’ve wasted all the previous money you donated, not to mention you’re, you know, screwing over your sisters. If these alumnae actually wanted the sorority to succeed (and clearly they don’t unless it’s totally on their terms), wouldn’t they instead power through the INSURMOUNTABLE AND TERRIFYING obstacle that is signing a black girl? The only thing that makes sense in this scenario is that the alumnae wouldn’t think any contribution they made could overcome the CRIPPLING BLOW of signing a black girl, because the sorority would be, socially speaking, too far gone, thus any future contributions would essentially be money wasted. Man, I thought I lived pathetically in the past because I work for TFM and hang out at the Blind Pig so much. At least I’m getting paid for it and not the other way around. Like I said, Alabama sorority alumnae only want to back a winner. Real quality sisterhood there. I can relate to these sorority girls.
If Alabama sororities haven't had a black girl as a member since 2003 because it would destroy them socially and financially, then does that, in essence, mean that the entire Greek system at Alabama is de jure racist and is the last real holdover from the segregated South?
Is this true, or is the author just mistaken?
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Posted on 9/15/13 at 3:51 pm to AlaTiger
quote:
and is the last real holdover from the segregated South?
funeral homes disagree.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 3:59 pm to AlaTiger
quote:
mean that the entire Greek system at Alabama is de jure racist and is the last real holdover from the segregated South?
The greek systems at all SEC schools are this way for the most part.
I remember at MSU when 2 black guys tried to enter a KA party they were turned down, and the reason given was "we don't like your kind in here". Black guys got mad and tried to fight and then half the fraternity ran out and beat the frick out of them. Cops showed up and arrested the black guys for disturbing the peace
Many have an "Old South" or Confederate themed date party. The houses themselves are usually modeled after the old antebellum plantation homes.
I really don't know why a black person would even want to join one to be honest.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 4:20 pm to deltaland
I just talked to someone involved in Greek life at Alabama and this was confirmed. Zero blacks in any fraternities or sororities there and it is not because black people opt out. It is a systemically forbidden and enforced with threat of punishment.
Here is the deal. U of A is controlled by the Greek system via the Machine which differentiates it from other schools.
U of A knows of what amounts to systemic racism that controls campus life.
U of A has not done anything about it but rather, encourages it.
Therefore, the University of Alabama is a racist institution not through voluntary association but through policy.
How am I wrong?
And, why would a single black person want to go to school there until this issue was addressed?
Here is the deal. U of A is controlled by the Greek system via the Machine which differentiates it from other schools.
U of A knows of what amounts to systemic racism that controls campus life.
U of A has not done anything about it but rather, encourages it.
Therefore, the University of Alabama is a racist institution not through voluntary association but through policy.
How am I wrong?
And, why would a single black person want to go to school there until this issue was addressed?
This post was edited on 9/15/13 at 4:21 pm
Posted on 9/15/13 at 5:30 pm to AlaTiger
But keep claiming the north is just as segregated/racist. 
This post was edited on 9/15/13 at 5:31 pm
Posted on 9/15/13 at 5:32 pm to AlaTiger
quote:
I just talked to someone involved in Greek life at Alabama and this was confirmed. Zero blacks in any fraternities or sororities there and it is not because black people opt out. It is a systemically forbidden and enforced with threat of punishment.
Then they are full of shite. I know few fraternities have black guys already. We do not have formal rush on the guys side, so people need to have connections or reach out to fraternities they are interested in. My entire time working with rush we haven't been contacted by a single black guy attempting to rush.
People like to hang out with like minded people. It is why on any major college campus you will see a bunch of white people hanging out with white people, or black people with other black people, or hell the asians may be the most segregated people I run into on campus.
quote:
U of A knows of what amounts to systemic racism that controls campus life.
U of A has not done anything about it but rather, encourages it.
Yeah you need need to get some better information man. We aren't any worse than any other SEC schools greek life. This only came out because these sororities WANTED to give the black girls bids, but the alumni basically Corleoned them out of it. They are going to still attempt to give them snap bids.
quote:
Therefore, the University of Alabama is a racist institution not through voluntary association but through policy.
What policy would that be? Please inform us quote:
And, why would a single black person want to go to school there until this issue was addressed?
Maybe because we are one of the best public college in the south. The racism shtick is made up by fans of opposing schools that think all of this is true or their school is better. Most black people could care less what goes on in greek life. We have a few very large black fraternities and sororities. Greek life makes up less than 25% of the campus. We have some of the nicest student housing in the country. We are incredibly good at football with an increasingly better overall athletic department. We have the nicest student recreation center I have seen at an SEC school.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 6:20 pm to AlaTiger
I don't know about fraternities, but according to a close family member who is from Alabama, and was in a sorority there less than ten years ago, that was the situation then, and as far as she knows, it has not changed. However, unfortunately, that is more common than one might think at many southern universities, not just Alabama.
Eta - Racial segregation isn't the only kind in Greek life. There is also religious segregation - sororities & fraternities that have been historically Jewish, but go through the motions of rushing non-Jews, never bidding on them. In the recent past, many have been "forced" to take non-Jewish pledges when it was made public, and there were complaints.
Segregation in Greek life has been prevalent for many, many years. My experience, and that of family members and friends at different schools, is that it was just "understood; an unwritten policy," but was definitely enforced.
Eta - Racial segregation isn't the only kind in Greek life. There is also religious segregation - sororities & fraternities that have been historically Jewish, but go through the motions of rushing non-Jews, never bidding on them. In the recent past, many have been "forced" to take non-Jewish pledges when it was made public, and there were complaints.
Segregation in Greek life has been prevalent for many, many years. My experience, and that of family members and friends at different schools, is that it was just "understood; an unwritten policy," but was definitely enforced.
This post was edited on 9/15/13 at 6:40 pm
Posted on 9/15/13 at 6:47 pm to AlaTiger
Are you Greek? Do you have a college education? Did you even attend college level classes?
This post was edited on 9/15/13 at 6:48 pm
Posted on 9/15/13 at 7:40 pm to AlaTiger
The Machine is overrated. What do they do besides rig elections that no one outside of the greek system cares about?
Posted on 9/15/13 at 8:51 pm to RTR America
You pretty much contradicted your first sentence with the rest of your post. Go back and read what you said. It is pretty bad.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 8:52 pm to mwlewis
Is this the part where I am supposed to feel bad about myself because I was not in a fraternity at Ole Miss?
And, yes, I have an undergrad degree from an SEC school and a master's degree as well.
And, yes, I have an undergrad degree from an SEC school and a master's degree as well.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 8:55 pm to AlaTiger
quote:
You pretty much contradicted your first sentence with the rest of your post. Go back and read what you said. It is pretty bad.
Looks fine to me.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 9:25 pm to AlaTiger
quote:
Is It True that Alabama Fraternities/Sororities Are Completely Segregated?
Not completely, no.
quote:
I just talked to someone involved in Greek life at Alabama and this was confirmed.
bullshite. If you actually read the articles about this, one traditionally white sorority has black members. There is still a lot of latent racism in greek organizations, though.
quote:
U of A is controlled by the Greek system via the Machine which differentiates it from other schools.
Damn, you people who think that 6,000 people control the campus life of 35,000 are fricking morons. Seriously, if you believe this, you're fricking stupid. They vote as a bloc in campus elections. There are 29,000 other students who laugh at greeks (and apparently LSU fans) because they realize that campus elections are meaningless.
It's amazing how stupid some of you people are.
quote:
How am I wrong?
In almost every way possible so far.
For the record, if you looked up the LSU sororities online (before many chapters pulled their group photos down) there are almost no black members in white sororities.
This is a greek problem, not a UA problem.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 10:47 pm to Evolved Simian
A lot of anger in this thread.
I'll provide some perspective as a Black student that is currently attending UA.
This is from my perspective, but what I believe is (IMO) a very common perception from non-Greek students at UA. If you take issue with how I perceive it, that's cool, but I'm just telling you how I think many people view the situation:
The Greek system at UA is absolutely racist. I hear from Greek apologists at UA all the time that there are a few Black guys in mostly White fraternities at UA, but in my four and a half years here I have NEVER seen one. It seems like every year there's a Black girl or two that try to join a White sorority and they are shut out every time. There was that one time a few years ago when Gamma Phi Beta let in a Black girl. That's cool, but it was one time. There still, in the year 2013, hasn't been a successful systematic integration.
I hate this because it makes my university look like a backwards piece of shite in the news. Every year or so there's some race-related story that gets regional coverage at the very least. A couple of years ago a column on the music building was vandalized with lynching imagery. Before that a Black graduate student was threatened and called the N-word while walking home by the DTD house. Before that controversy erupted over KA parading in Confederate uniforms outside of a Black sorority's 35th anniversary celebration. Now this. Up to this point I've always defended my university because I love it and I feel like this backwards mindset is not really representative of most students' here; however, it has become ever-more clear to me that not just a significant portion of the student body, but the entire administration is willing to abide this divided campus ethos.
The Greek system and the UA administration should be ashamed of themselves. Greek students like yourself should stop acting like a problem doesn't exist (two people have jumped into this thread calling OP's allegations bullshite when there is clearly some merit to what he is saying). I don't know any other way to say it: if you are denying that there is a problem here, then you are yet another cog in the machine of inequality at UA.
I'll provide some perspective as a Black student that is currently attending UA.
This is from my perspective, but what I believe is (IMO) a very common perception from non-Greek students at UA. If you take issue with how I perceive it, that's cool, but I'm just telling you how I think many people view the situation:
The Greek system at UA is absolutely racist. I hear from Greek apologists at UA all the time that there are a few Black guys in mostly White fraternities at UA, but in my four and a half years here I have NEVER seen one. It seems like every year there's a Black girl or two that try to join a White sorority and they are shut out every time. There was that one time a few years ago when Gamma Phi Beta let in a Black girl. That's cool, but it was one time. There still, in the year 2013, hasn't been a successful systematic integration.
I hate this because it makes my university look like a backwards piece of shite in the news. Every year or so there's some race-related story that gets regional coverage at the very least. A couple of years ago a column on the music building was vandalized with lynching imagery. Before that a Black graduate student was threatened and called the N-word while walking home by the DTD house. Before that controversy erupted over KA parading in Confederate uniforms outside of a Black sorority's 35th anniversary celebration. Now this. Up to this point I've always defended my university because I love it and I feel like this backwards mindset is not really representative of most students' here; however, it has become ever-more clear to me that not just a significant portion of the student body, but the entire administration is willing to abide this divided campus ethos.
The Greek system and the UA administration should be ashamed of themselves. Greek students like yourself should stop acting like a problem doesn't exist (two people have jumped into this thread calling OP's allegations bullshite when there is clearly some merit to what he is saying). I don't know any other way to say it: if you are denying that there is a problem here, then you are yet another cog in the machine of inequality at UA.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 10:55 pm to jbond
quote:
jbond
Telling it like it is
Posted on 9/15/13 at 10:59 pm to TbirdSpur2010
I didn't mean for it to turn into a rant... but about halfway through it I got a bit worked up.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 11:06 pm to jbond
It's cool, I got all hot and bothered talking about an incident that happened to me on the university of texas campus the other day.
This IS the Rant, after all
This IS the Rant, after all
Posted on 9/15/13 at 11:29 pm to jbond
quote:
jbond
Thank you. What you have said here is what I have heard from white students at UA, both Greek and non-Greek.
The "defenders" here in this thread sound like their parents and grandparents probably sounded when they were saying that things weren't that bad in the South racially, blacks liked the situation, and those calling for change were just rabble rousers and instigators.
Ridiculous. How any of this can be defended is beyond me.
Thank you for your perspective. Seriously.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 11:48 pm to jbond
quote:
jbond
fricking PREACH!!
I've always said that there were two sides to Alabama:
There is "Bama", which is shown every Saturday on tv's across the country;
and then there is "The University of Alabama" which exists every other day of the week but is never shown.
When I think of "Bama" I think of smiling fans of all races shouting "Roll Tide Roll" and everyone having a good time as we cheer on our team. ALL barriers are briefly nonexistent as we all cheer on our boys to victory as a unified front.
When I think of "The University of Alabama" I think of new education practices mixed in with old southern ways and traditions. Yes racial progress has been made in the last 50 years, and overall people get along all over campus, but there is still the giant dark cloud covering the campus, and that is the blatant segregation within the Greek community. It's seen daily but is never talked about (except by the CW). I honestly thought this wasn't going to change for a loooooong time, if ever. I'm glad this story has gotten this much attention and I sincerely hope things change long term, not just next year so UA can appease "those damn liberal Yankees" and then in a few years everything goes back to the way they were.
Also I know it's sad, but I'm surprised that other people from different schools in the SEC and otherwise were surprised that this was going on here. I thought that this happened pretty much everywhere, it was just never talked about. It's good to know that this isn't the Greek Status Quo.
Posted on 9/15/13 at 11:49 pm to TbirdSpur2010
quote:
It's cool, I got all hot and bothered talking about an incident that happened to me on the university of texas campus the other day.
This IS the Rant, after all
What happened at Texas?
Also I had a great time at aTm, y'all were really friendly as a fan base, and it was a great game.
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