So this week, yet another email was published nationally in attempts to make the world believe that sorority girls are actually insane. First there was the letter from a disgruntled member from Maryland, "Don't Be Boners" to refresh your memories, and now there's this one. I am so tired of reading the opinions of irrelevant journalists. While the first letter was a little frightening and definitely not the way to address your entire sisterhood, the second letter is monumentally more appropriate and even warranted in the situation.
The email sent was nothing but a reminder of all the things the women in this sorority already know. For sororities, recruitment is like speed-dating. The PNMs know this, the sisters know this, the only people who don't know this are those not in Greek life who think they know what they're talking about. Spanx are commonly used all over the world. Women wear them to feel better about the bumps and bulges that come with having a woman's body. You could be a size zero and still look better in a dress with Spanx than without. They even make Spanx for men, so don't knock it until you've tried it. People are claiming this girl had no right to say that women should be required to wear Spanx and those people are right, but it is not wildly inappropriate for the girl in charge of recruitment to suggest.
The next few items on the list are about hair, makeup, personal hygiene and grooming. Newsflash: college girls actually like getting "dolled-up." They spend their time and money at hair salons, shopping for new clothes, and watching Youtube makeup tutorials online. Recruitment (aka speed-dating) is when these sorority women make their first impression on those who wish to also become sorority women. There is a desire among these women in sororities to look and feel their best and this list basically just instructed them on how to do so. Girls in sororities really do spend 15 hours in the same uncomfortable heels talking to groups and groups of strangers while only having 4 minutes in between "parties" to freshen up. Its necessary that they understand that while you may look refreshed and feel good at 9 am, by 4 pm you want to cry from exhaustion. This list prepares them for the long days ahead and allows them to confidently talk to hundreds of strangers for hours on end.
I am not saying this email was completely necessary. Some of the suggestions and tips were a little neurotic, but the girl who wrote it had her heart in the right place. It's ridiculous that people who have never experienced sorority recruitment are the ones complaining the loudest. No one is forcing these women to participate, they're here willingly. I would like to say that whichever girl from the chapter leaked this email should feel bad about making her sister publicly embarrassed for having the welfare of the chapter in her heart. Recruitment is a grueling process and while she may have gone a little over the top, she was just trying to make sure you'd look good.
