TThe first fraternity system was founded in 1755 at the College of William and Mary as an exclusive secret society for students to gather outside of the classroom. Although no longer secret, fraternities have retained their exclusivity and now take pride in it, alongside their sister system, the sororities.
However, Greek life has changed dramatically since its founding, with sororities and fraternities now adopting hierarchical systems that glorify conformity rather than academic success.
On the surface, joining a sorority or fraternity seems like a great way to surround yourself with people who share the same values and ideals. But Greek life is problematic.
This exacerbates discrimination based on race, gender and socioeconomic class, and encourages sexual violence and misogyny. Systemic reforms should have been made to this system years ago.
Greek life has always lacked diversity. White students make up more than 70% of all members. And unsurprisingly, Greek life at the University of Alabama is one of the most problematic in the country.
An African American student in this system was salutatorian of her class and earned a 4.3 grade point average. She received no offers to any of the 16 most prestigious sororities on campus. She never stood a chance against her white competitors, no matter how perfect her candidacy was.
On top of that, socioeconomic class and dues prove to be another factor that makes Greek life more exclusive. A Princeton study concluded that 95 percent of members of college sororities or fraternities came from the wealthiest neighborhood in America. Only 5% came from lower to middle class families.
This creates an even greater divide on campuses, as only the wealthiest and most privileged members of Greek life attend. In addition to their social power, they also have the ability to use costs as a filter to separate those at different levels of the socioeconomic ladder.
Perhaps the most well-known problem in Greek life is rape culture and the obscenely high number of sexual assault cases within fraternities. Fraternity members are 300% more likely to commit rape, and sorority members are 74% more likely to be victims of sexual assault on campus than non-fraternity women. sorority.
This problem stems from the fact that fraternity culture is closely linked to toxic masculinity and alcohol and drug abuse, and the challenges of hazing encourage members to fall into a continuous cycle of lewd behavior, such as the organization of sexual contests.
Members of Cornell University’s Zeta Beta Tau, for example, where they were encouraged to have sex with as many unsuspecting women as possible, and the heavier the woman was, the more points they received. This was nicknamed the “roast pig” in reference to the weight of women. Fraternities are a place where men can denigrate marginalized communities, and the “rich white” stereotype really shines through.
Those involved in Greek life continue to see the benefits even after graduation. Various studies and research have established that Greek alumni enjoy significantly more career and social networking opportunities. It was found that 76% of U.S. senators and 85% of Supreme Court justices since 1910 were alumni of fraternities and sororities. Greek life ensures that the rich stay rich and the poor stay poor.
Fortunately, the problematic nature of Greek life began to surface and the number of students joining fraternities and sororities decreased significantly. At Vanderbilt University, the percentage of women in sororities fell from 55.9% in 2013 to 35% in 2019. And in some places, students have started petitions to ban Greek life on campus altogether.
For example, “Abolish Greek Life” is a movement that was started to ban sororities and fraternities and has gained popularity at several universities.
It may seem like Greek life and its toxicity and exclusivity are a trivial problem compared to other problems in the United States. However, Greek life only promotes a larger problem, using and promoting injustice, which is what this country was founded on.
College students, including Greek life alumni, directly feed into society, where many alumni will hold jobs in politics, business, economics, where they inherently have the power to shape our society, thus continuing the vicious and endless cycle of racial and economic inequality. socio-economic disparity.
Abolishing Greek life would be a step in the right direction, but it’s easier said than done because there are still many people who want to be a part of Greek life and well-connected alumni who will do anything to keep the system alive.
But if Greek life is to survive on college campuses, major reforms are necessary, and those in power must work to eliminate systemic problems such as racism, classism, and rape culture by fighting the establishment built on discrimination.
