I’ll be the first person to talk about the positive attributes of Greek life: amazing friends, a network of social and professional opportunities and delicious food (s/o to Chef Kyle!) After almost a year of being involved with Greek life, my goggles have cleared and I’m beginning to see its deeply embedded sexism, and it angers me that no one is talking about it or actively trying to fix the problem. I want to start a conversation about how we can change the power dynamic of Greek culture to one that is equal.
1. Recruitment Process
Recruitment is extremely different for fraternities and sororities. Women are required to visit every house and have formal conversations with members of the sororities. Everything is timed out perfectly and planned to a T. Men, on the other hand, are allowed to choose which houses they attend and the process is more laid back. They have more freedom while the women have strict rules about giving everyone the same chance to explore each house. This is not to say that either process is wrong, but their differences reflect how much of our world is controlled by gender roles: men are generally given more freedoms and luxuries, while women are expected to be reserved and proper.
2. Women Impressing Men
The Greek system is also set up in a way that expects women to impress men. The most direct example of this is that the parties happen at fraternity houses. This blatantly states that fraternities hold the power and are therefore higher in the social hierarchy. Girls are expected to flock to the houses IF they're lucky enough to be put on a list. This sometimes involves texting your friends and begging to be put on said list, which is extremely degrading. This list system also often results in unequal proportions of men and women at the parties, guaranteeing that there will be more prospects for the men. Again, it puts more power in their hands. This is a problem that could be very easily solved by letting sororities host parties; however, many sororities have national regulations that don't allow them to have alcohol in their houses. Although I understand the reasoning behind this rule, I believe that it is unfair for fraternities to not enforce the same rule.
So why do women (myself included) blindly feed into the system and give men power? Why don't we boycott fraternity parties and throw our own alcohol-free parties in our sorority houses? (This is an option that I would 100% be okay with). Women have been socialized to believe that their main goal is to appease men, find a husband, pop out some babies and fulfill their womanly duties. Although certain customs have changed over the years, the basic idea remains the same: everything revolves around the white, heterosexual, cisgender man. Women often don’t recognize the prevalence of this because they grew up learning it was normal.
3. Socioeconomic Status
Greek life can also further divide people based on socioeconomic status. This definitely isn't the case everywhere. At Butler, it's actually cheaper to live in a Greek house for a year than to live in the common sophomore residence hall. However, at some colleges and universities, the dues are so high it creates an economic divide. Greek life becomes something that is exclusive. It can perpetuate elitism and compound class-based and racial segregation on college campuses. For example, "At the most selective colleges, 70 percent of students come from the richest quarter of the population, while a mere 5 percent come from the bottom quarter." Men in high leadership positions also have a history of being involved with Greek life. "While only 2 percent of America’s population is involved in fraternities, 80 percent of Fortune 500 executives, 76 percent of U.S. senators and congressmen, 85 percent of Supreme Court justices, and all but two presidents since 1825 have been fraternity men." Obama was one of the two that wasn’t in a fraternity, by the way. (Separate but Unequal on College Campuses).
4. Moving Forward
I want Greek life to move forward and be a reflection of the good things in our world. I respect the traditions of sororities but believe they can be adjusted to enact positive change. I want us to push ourselves in every area, just like my sisters and I push each other to be better versions of ourselves every single day. In the meantime, don’t be afraid to have these conversations.
