To the producers of the movie Goat:
Everyone is talking about your new movie starring Ben Schnetzer, James Franco, Nick Jonas. Woohoo! Three of our generations best looking men! ***inserts emoji with heart eyes***
The idea of it sounded great... until I saw the preview. The movie is about a freshman who wants to join the same fraternity as his older brother. In the pledging process, the younger brother must go through an extreme manner of hazing. The movie Goat was partly filmed on the University of Cincinnati's campus, where Greek life plays a significant role on the campus, as The University of Cincinnati is home to more than 39 sororities and fraternities. How do I know? I'm a part of it. And I'm proud.
I can report from honest experience that Greek life is NOT about hazing, getting wasted, buying your friends, or tearing others down in the process. In fact, it does quite the opposite. The previews for this upcoming movie make me sick; not only does it portray Greek Life in an indescribable manner but it fails to show what an awesome experience joining Greek life can be and burns the reputation even worse than it has already been burned.
Greek life gets stereotyped enough as it is. I hear all the time from family and friends: "I didn't know you were a sorority girl?" Well, what exactly is a sorority girl? The answer to that question is, well, there is no answer. Greek Life promotes inclusiveness; as a member, I have met people in my sorority from every major, background, size, shape, and area of the country imaginable. We thrive off of diversity. So to place a stereotype on "what a sorority girl is," is unfair and actually ends up putting a limitation on the idea-- counteractive to the purpose it's supposed to serve.
It's movies like Goat that changes the perceptions of students, parents, faculty, and anyone in between when it comes to organizations such as Greek Life. For starters, the media does not recognize our philanthropy events. In fact, most every sorority or fraternity has an organization that they support throughout the year, hoping to raise money to help better the lives of others in some shape or form. Greek life at the University of Cincinnati has raised over 120,000 dollars and donated 28,000 hours of community service to over 80 local charities. My sorority, Theta Phi Alpha, supports the Dragonfly Foundation, which helps support cancer patients as well as the parents by providing comfort and happiness. One of many fraternities at the University of Cincinnati, Delta Tau Delta, helps support JDRF, or the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. And finally, just to name a few, the sorority Kappa Alpha Theta helps support CASA: a program that allows abused or neglected children to have a safe "advocate" to help the children live a better life. It's clear what the intentions of any Greek Life organization are: nothing but good, on both a local and national level.
Those involved in Greek life dedicate their time and talents to help those in the community, charities and organizations, and the school itself. The focus of these organizations is to build each other up socially, mentally, academically, and any other way imaginable. Greek life is a great way to meet people, especially for freshman who are just starting out in their college years. When you are a new student at a large university, sometimes it is hard to make friends. But when you join a sorority or a fraternity, you get to meet a lot of new people who have similar values and interests. Every year people graduate college with a better reflection on their college years due to their involvement in a fraternity or sorority. The commitment to Greek life has provided them with friendships that will last a lifetime and have a sense of pride to their alma mater.
No, I will not see Goat. I will not pay money to watch a movie for an hour and a half that portrays something so important to me in a disgusting and negative manor. I am embarrassed that this movie was filmed at a University where Greek Life thrives. I can only hope that peoples' perceptions and understandings of Greek Life won't be permanently damaged. Greek Life is something that's very important to me, and I hope to see the day where it is no longer criticized and bashed as it is today.
Sincerely,
Tired of Greek Life Being Bashed All the Time
