Sistah sistah
Feb 27th, 2007 at 5:05 pm by Dr. S
Bet you thought that “pledge” worked both ways, huh?
A national sorority’s decision to dump two-thirds of the sisters in one of its Indiana houses — possibly because of their looks — is getting national attention and a review from the school of its sororities and fraternities.
The New York Times reported Sunday that national officers of Delta Zeta were worried about a negative stereotype and declining membership in its DePauw University chapter in Greencastle, Ind.
Thirty-five sisters were interviewed in November, and 23 were deemed insufficiently committed to the sorority and recruitment. Just before final exams in December, they were told to leave.
It’s like I’ve always said: Fraternities and sororities are fucking stupid.
Seriously, I never understood what would draw a person to an organization like this. I always thought there was something basic and important missing for someone who needed that social blanket so badly that they’d be willing to degrade themselves by going through the bullshit of rushing, pledging and hazing to get it. (”Shove a carrot up my ass? Yes, sir. Anything to hang out with you.”)
I had a roommate in college who belonged to a fraternity. I asked him why he joined, and he said it was so he could meet a diverse group of people.
I almost fell over when he said that.
My son joined a frat in college for, I think, two reasons. First, he could park near campus in their lot, and second, he could move out of the dorm. He made a lot of good friends, but it is telling that he left that school after two years, and last year declined to pay his dues. I now no longer feel like such a failure as a parent. Oh yeah, I’m sure that the ’round the clock partying had nothing to do with it. That’s why he now says that he had more fun than he ever wants to have again during those two years.
‘diverse group of people’ is code for ‘people of higher social status’.
I never could figure out why anyone would be interested in these groups. It just seemed to me these were organizations whose purpose was to have no purpose at all.
I’ve never been one for finding myself through group identity.
Ok, I’m gonna dissent here. I joined a fraternity my freshman year of college at least in part because I was 2000 miles from my previous home and I found the idea of getting to instantly meet 50 people attractive. We were about as diverse as you could get (the pledge class was 35 guys, including a Jew, a Mexican-American, a couple of upstate New Yorkers, a guy from Tupelo MS, a car nut from Gary IN, etc., etc.). A couple of those eventual friendships have lasted 35 years.
The fraternity was national, but second-tier; not one of the big ones you see mentioned (Sigma Chi, Delta Chi).
Oddly, Delta Zeta was one of the sororities we gravitated toward for social life back then.