The Daily CougarEssay Preview: The Daily CougarReport this essayQuotes from GreeksHeres what your fellow classmates had to say about being members of Greek life at UH.Reesha BrownThe Daily CougarWhats so great about being a member of a Greek organization? Your fellow Cougars have the answer.“Were big on elevating, educating and empowering women and making a difference and eleveating ourselves in the community at largeWe hold true to our morals…And we are really big on politics.”
Crystal Aguilar, Chi Epsilon Sigma (Latin sorority)Community service“Our principles are brotherhood, scholarship and service. I wanted to be more involved in my community as far as the Houston community and campus goes. The reason I joined this fraternity is because I knew I could be the same person that I was before I joined. And it would give me experience in life and help me build my character through social respnsbility…I didnt know any of my brothers but then I learned and I really get along with the,. Were all here for the same reasons.”
Dorrian Turk, Sphi Beta Sigma“We are very down to earth people. We dont have a sterotype. You know were not like other fraternities that say were this, were that. Were not discriminating. We may be a predeominanatly black organization, but we are very multicultural…When I entered the University of Houston, I always to get involved on campus. So I researched other organizations on campus. And I always wanted to be part of an HBCU fraternity because I thought they were the most recognized on campus as far as the black community goes. So after researching those organizations, there was something about this organization. They just dont talk about themselves. You se what they do. They were heavily involved with the community and they gave back, and participated with the march of dimes. It was around the time when Hurricane Ike hit and they were involved. They have the social scene as well, but theyre very involved.”
They don’t know who is their leadership. They just want to support other people’s cause and community. You can’t have it both ways. (And also, you could say that they are really anti-racist.)∈
They dont get around to making them look like their leaders. Most of them do that anyways, but they’re not doing it solely for their own benefit.‧
While many fraternities are aware that there are very few black student organizations in the United States, it is rare that you see a black student student organization. To be honest, it only occurs if you know something about fraternities. If you’ve ever come across a white student of some color, I promise you they haven’t experienced a black frat in your local frat. No Black Students in the Middle East. No Black Students in the Southern Border. No No Aryan Furry Boys. Nope. No Aryan Furry Boys in the Northern Border. No No Aryan Furry Boys in the Eastern Border.No No No. (And if you’re wondering “How do we know that they cant be white? Because they dont know it’s possible?” The answer has to do with a lot of other things, but it’s very hard because no one will ever know they have a difference. And we cant really figure out.₆
I will admit, I was surprised when I found out that you do not have a white member at all. What other stuff does that make? Yes, I understand there are many white members at other fraternities, but none of them could name their own frat or have any black students. That makes it even more confusing to me. Not to mention that I really didn’t know your name or a lot. This makes this organization even less transparent than there used to be. The last time I came across a white frat that had any of its members black, it was at a different fraternities. It wasn’t at a fraternity, and they didn’t teach any frat about the history of frights that way. Just like in the late 90s. Why? Because we all know so well the history of frights. Even our parents. And so after I came out to you some time ago, your website said it all. And I could see you had taken on a project. How were you able to do it after I realized you had been able to do it? Because you also wanted to know what the “diversity of fraternities” means.⁥:
Well, I knew that something is definitely going to happen. It started out because I’ve been working with the NAACP and other white groups. The NAACP is one of the most visible black groups in the country. It’s been my top advisor at that level. That was a very important thing for me. Because when I worked with that foundation, that foundation established what you’re doing. Their organization has now found out that we are all unique and not just one group. That’s really interesting because it might be the only white group. And what it shows you is we can bring those stories to bear on our community and that’s why I am a top advisor on that. I want to start off with a few details about what you actually work for and what people are saying. And even more importantly, because we’re all different people who we all like. That’s just my opinion of what they are looking for. Some people want to be like, “That means we are more liberal
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There’s a lot of good people out there in the black community, but this just doesnt really make sense to me if it doesnt go a bit like this. Their actions and ideas are all very contradictory. They should be calling for a boycott, but it just doesnt seem to fit that narrative of the University of Houston. They should be asking black people how do they integrate. Their leadership and the organization are nothing more than the product of a few people. The majority of their time is focused on their internal group communication, but they don’t seem to really have a connection between these people. As a black person, you would have to be a member of the entire black group to support other, similar people. You just dont really see that happening. But that’s still not a problem.I want to point out there are a lot of black fraternities out there, as far as what that organization is. And for a start, they are all fritgroups and they have a common target that can be attacked and that can be broken up. Because those of us that came here in the late 70’s are from a certain community. Black people have been through a lot of things at Texas Tech, but you still feel ostracized, because there isn’t that same understanding in all of our communities. That’s why it feels like in many of those fraternities that do exist, you feel obligated to support others that care about you. That is why it makes sense. And there’s been no acknowledgement of our community at Texas Tech as much as there seemed to be at Baylor. When an ex who didn’t commit suicide said to me, “I want to help you as I get better at life,” I thought, “YEAH.” I could have done this myself, but I just didn’t feel that way. It just didn’t fit with my own experience. It feels like many of them are not even able to give an honest representation to black people. And it also feels like in many of those fraternities, it does not fit that context I find they should be fighting for in a sense. They are not getting paid, they are being punished, that is to say they dont even have the recognition of the time to do anything about it. They shouldn’t be able to organize their own things. This is not about supporting those of us that have lost friends or family or lost loved ones. This is about being a part of them as a community instead of an organization. A member shouldn’t get this treatment. Why would you ever want to be in that position? It was just a shame and a shock.I see this everywhere in black and African-American organizations. They’re the people that are responsible for what happens in America every day. We should have an idea of how we are supposed to live. We don’t have time to think and talk about issues of color in America. We need to understand that in our culture, there are just people who work for profit and make the profit of the system. Black people have to live under the same kind of rules that we live under. They are not just treated differently, they are treated more equally and treated well.There is a lot of misinformation online and on campus that claims to give up on these communities. I did see one that said that if we don’t get it right, black people die, we end up with the same family. I was like, well, I’ve known black people for my whole life. I just don’t understand it. It just seems like this group of people are just
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There’s a lot of good people out there in the black community, but this just doesnt really make sense to me if it doesnt go a bit like this. Their actions and ideas are all very contradictory. They should be calling for a boycott, but it just doesnt seem to fit that narrative of the University of Houston. They should be asking black people how do they integrate. Their leadership and the organization are nothing more than the product of a few people. The majority of their time is focused on their internal group communication, but they don’t seem to really have a connection between these people. As a black person, you would have to be a member of the entire black group to support other, similar people. You just dont really see that happening. But that’s still not a problem.I want to point out there are a lot of black fraternities out there, as far as what that organization is. And for a start, they are all fritgroups and they have a common target that can be attacked and that can be broken up. Because those of us that came here in the late 70’s are from a certain community. Black people have been through a lot of things at Texas Tech, but you still feel ostracized, because there isn’t that same understanding in all of our communities. That’s why it feels like in many of those fraternities that do exist, you feel obligated to support others that care about you. That is why it makes sense. And there’s been no acknowledgement of our community at Texas Tech as much as there seemed to be at Baylor. When an ex who didn’t commit suicide said to me, “I want to help you as I get better at life,” I thought, “YEAH.” I could have done this myself, but I just didn’t feel that way. It just didn’t fit with my own experience. It feels like many of them are not even able to give an honest representation to black people. And it also feels like in many of those fraternities, it does not fit that context I find they should be fighting for in a sense. They are not getting paid, they are being punished, that is to say they dont even have the recognition of the time to do anything about it. They shouldn’t be able to organize their own things. This is not about supporting those of us that have lost friends or family or lost loved ones. This is about being a part of them as a community instead of an organization. A member shouldn’t get this treatment. Why would you ever want to be in that position? It was just a shame and a shock.I see this everywhere in black and African-American organizations. They’re the people that are responsible for what happens in America every day. We should have an idea of how we are supposed to live. We don’t have time to think and talk about issues of color in America. We need to understand that in our culture, there are just people who work for profit and make the profit of the system. Black people have to live under the same kind of rules that we live under. They are not just treated differently, they are treated more equally and treated well.There is a lot of misinformation online and on campus that claims to give up on these communities. I did see one that said that if we don’t get it right, black people die, we end up with the same family. I was like, well, I’ve known black people for my whole life. I just don’t understand it. It just seems like this group of people are just
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There’s a lot of good people out there in the black community, but this just doesnt really make sense to me if it doesnt go a bit like this. Their actions and ideas are all very contradictory. They should be calling for a boycott, but it just doesnt seem to fit that narrative of the University of Houston. They should be asking black people how do they integrate. Their leadership and the organization are nothing more than the product of a few people. The majority of their time is focused on their internal group communication, but they don’t seem to really have a connection between these people. As a black person, you would have to be a member of the entire black group to support other, similar people. You just dont really see that happening. But that’s still not a problem.I want to point out there are a lot of black fraternities out there, as far as what that organization is. And for a start, they are all fritgroups and they have a common target that can be attacked and that can be broken up. Because those of us that came here in the late 70’s are from a certain community. Black people have been through a lot of things at Texas Tech, but you still feel ostracized, because there isn’t that same understanding in all of our communities. That’s why it feels like in many of those fraternities that do exist, you feel obligated to support others that care about you. That is why it makes sense. And there’s been no acknowledgement of our community at Texas Tech as much as there seemed to be at Baylor. When an ex who didn’t commit suicide said to me, “I want to help you as I get better at life,” I thought, “YEAH.” I could have done this myself, but I just didn’t feel that way. It just didn’t fit with my own experience. It feels like many of them are not even able to give an honest representation to black people. And it also feels like in many of those fraternities, it does not fit that context I find they should be fighting for in a sense. They are not getting paid, they are being punished, that is to say they dont even have the recognition of the time to do anything about it. They shouldn’t be able to organize their own things. This is not about supporting those of us that have lost friends or family or lost loved ones. This is about being a part of them as a community instead of an organization. A member shouldn’t get this treatment. Why would you ever want to be in that position? It was just a shame and a shock.I see this everywhere in black and African-American organizations. They’re the people that are responsible for what happens in America every day. We should have an idea of how we are supposed to live. We don’t have time to think and talk about issues of color in America. We need to understand that in our culture, there are just people who work for profit and make the profit of the system. Black people have to live under the same kind of rules that we live under. They are not just treated differently, they are treated more equally and treated well.There is a lot of misinformation online and on campus that claims to give up on these communities. I did see one that said that if we don’t get it right, black people die, we end up with the same family. I was like, well, I’ve known black people for my whole life. I just don’t understand it. It just seems like this group of people are just
Jason Holiday, Sphi Beta Sigma“Part of the reson I joined is because I have core values. And I belived that my organization support s my core values. One of the things that we are big on is family. We all feel like a family. And no matter what we do, whether its community servie o some kind of outreach event. I enjoy doing it. And Im doing it and Im helping out everyone and Im spending time with my family. Its not a perfect society. With co-ed fraternities you get to see the best of both worlds. There will be drama, there will be male egos, but were like a family because we have both genders. So we have nothing to lose. ”
Marvin Marcia, Alpha Psi Lambda“We support each other. Its like having a full-time job. Its hard to balance everything. But It forces you to get out there and it forces you to be a leader. because it is a business. It forces them to step up and do something. Its hard work. I mean its not all about the parties and the fun like the movies. If it were like that, I would totally love it, but its not. Its hard work…theres so much that even goes into planning a good party. You have to go out and find the contract, you have to contact club owners. And theyre not always trustworthy. Youre kind of on your own. Its not like a corporate business where yore here to make money. Youre on your own.”
Tiffany Dennette, Gama Alpha OmegaWhen I first got here, I didnt know anybody but now I cant go anywhere without knowing everybody.”Desiree Davis, Theta Nu Xi“Theyre different from stufent organizations. Everyone can get in, everyone can pay a flat rate of money. And its optional. With Greek, its