Fraternities and Sororities are a big part of college life at nearly every university. The Greek organizations participate in community service events, and look to be leaders on their campus in preparation for being leaders that can prosper out in the world. I've literally seen young men and women transform into incredible human beings after being initiated into these exclusive organizations with regards to their academics going forward, humility, and service to others. Seeing all of that it may come as a surprise that I would still most likely never join a Greek organization. Allow me to elaborate.
One thing I never could get with as far as becoming Greek is the hazing. I never understood how making someone endure demeaning situations, physically abusing a person, and yelling at someone "builds character". While all Greek organizations have a disclaimer that states that there is no hazing being done during their processes, this is not always the case. Like Bradley Doyley who died in February under circumstances believed to be tied to his pledging Alpha Phi Alpha.
Another issue that I have as far as joining the Greek organizations is the payment process. You mean after weeks of pain and "character building" you want me to pay you hundreds of dollars? To me, becoming Greek should be free so long as the group feels that the person will be a valuable asset to the society and they meet all of the other credentials. Besides, the pledging process is so long that people often fail or drop classes during the process so you could at least let them keep that money to put towards paying for taking that class over.
The idea of becoming brothers or sisters with people that you never particularly cared for prior to the process, or didn't know is strange to me. In 10-12 weeks, I'm not so sure that I would be willing to refer to a man as my brother, even if we're together for most of the time. For me, there are credentials to being my brother that is impossible for a person to meet during the pledging process. I want to see who's there when I need them, and for me, the pledging process is short enough that I cannot gain a good sense of that. During the process, a person's focus is not on meeting my standards of what a brother should be.
Again I say that I acknowledge the value of Greek organizations for their good deeds and the connections that you can make through them that will be useful for things such as getting jobs. Countless charitable events, mentoring for young men, and the entire brother/sisterhood aspect is incredible. Nevertheless, I personally feel more than capable of attaining the same level of success as someone that is in a fraternity or sorority by working hard and honing my skills. I perform service and I'm developing myself and others to get to the point where we can be valuable assets in the workforce. For those reasons I see no reason to become Greek, however, I respect those that do and I'll still go to your probate and cheer you on, because 10-12 weeks of anything is hard work and you guys earned it.
