Unless you live under a rock, you've probably heard about the recent backlash over Alabama Alpha Phi's latest sorority recruitment video.
The video, which has since been deleted from the sorority's YouTube page, but can still be found at various sources online, highlighted the beautiful women of Alpha Phi and their sprawling mansion on the University of Alabama campus. Women were shown frolicking around campus in colorful sundresses and rompers and swimming at the lake in teeny bikinis. There was no shortage of glitter-blowing or piggy-back rides. Stereotypical, yes. Un-empowering, "racially-homogeneous", and vapid? Perhaps not.
This quote from an AL.com writer sums up how those who are against the video generally feel: "It's all so racially and aesthetically homogeneous and forced, so hyper-feminine, so reductive and objectifying, so Stepford Wives: College Edition. It's all so ... unempowering."
While the video features many beautiful, thin, and, yes, Caucasian women, does that mean that it is "racially and aesthetically homogeneous"? Should the ladies of Alpha Phi be to blame for their beauty? Perhaps romping around in skimpy bathing suits was not necessary, but if this is how the women of Alpha Phi choose to portray themselves, let them. Women with similar values will be attracted to this video and perhaps choose Alpha Phi as their sorority. Girls going through recruitment who do not want to portray themselves in this light can choose to not rush Alpha Phi.
Many are upset over the video's "lack of depth" and claim that the sorority is simply promoting the objectification of women. However, many also fail to realize that this was a promotional video released before recruitment even began at the University of Alabama, meant to attract potential members by giving a quick glimpse of life as a sorority woman in Alpha Phi at Alabama. To learn more about a chapter and it's philanthropy, GPA requirements, and sisterhood, one would have to go through formal recruitment, which has specific rounds dedicated to each of these things.
If you ask me, Alabama Alpha Phi did an amazing job at creating buzz and generating interest in their sorority. The video has been all over national news, and had nearly half a million views in it's first few days on YouTube. Recruiting Kenyan Drake, running back for the Crimson Tide, was just the icing on the cake. Some claim it was a desperate attempt to incorporate diversity, I see it as an ingenious marketing strategy, especially for a die-hard football school like Alabama.
The video has been used as a way to highlight all the negative aspects of Greek life. Non-Greek members are using this as an opportunity to slam Greek life, saying that all it is good for is binge drinking, reckless behavior, and partying.
I do not deny that there are statistics supporting negative aspects of Greek life, but I would like to point out that the positive aspects rarely reach the news. The media would much rather cover a story about hazing in a sorority house or fraternity brothers singing racial songs than the success of a Greek member in the workforce. Perhaps this is because the success of Greeks after graduation is all too common. Graduation rates are 20 percent higher among Greeks. Being in a Greek organization helps build leadership skills and provides invaluable connections. Every sorority has a philanthropy in which they hold fundraisers and events each year. However, a successful philanthropy event will never be highlighted in the news, but instead we will focus on a risqué recruitment video that "objectifies women".
As a woman, I do not feel demeaned or offended by Alabama Alpha Phi's recruitment video. After watching it, my thoughts were that it was very well filmed and that the women looked like they were having fun and enjoyed their sisterhood. The shots were clear, the editing was superb, and the music was current and upbeat. I recognize that it is stereotypical, of course, but what sorority videos aren't? This video is not much different than many just like it at other campuses across the nation.
The AL.com writer claims that "these young women, with all their flouncing and hair-flipping, are making it so terribly difficult for anyone to take them seriously, now or in the future." I do not see why being beautiful, happy, and having fun in college means that there will be no success in school or later in life. Just because the girls in this video are dressed in coordinating outfits and wearing full faces of makeup does not mean that they are vapid, shallow sorority girls. We know nothing about them besides that they are beautiful. Why can't a women who is beautiful not be taken seriously? A successful woman should also be able to curl her hair and wear stilettos if she so chooses. Everyone has the right to make decisions about how they are portrayed, just as the sorority women in this video did.
Overall, the reactions to this video are out of control. It is concerning that a promotional sorority video is worthy of a spot on national television news, but it has sparked a very insightful debate. Despite the various points of view, this video is simply a surface-level look into a sorority chapter, meant to draw attention and attract potential new members. I do not see it as a demeaning or objectifying video towards women, or a negative portrayal of sorority women as a whole. It is a lighthearted look into Alabama's Alpha Phi chapter and their members, and if you don't like it, don't join Alabama Alpha Phi.
