Stepping Into Irrelevance?

[Sapphire]

Since we need some life in this section and Fatal's taking to long to post like she did on SH.

www.theroot.com/blogs/community-service-and-stepping/stepping-irrelevance

I’ve got a question for you. What if black fraternities and sororities were asked by President Obama to place a moratorium on stepping for exactly one school year? Instead of devoting the time toward practicing and performing steps, or attending step show for that matter, they would instead use that time to create an innovative community service project, something that has never been seen or done before?

Farfetched, you say? Well, why not? I happen to think that stepping has become an albatross for many of our chapters, a beast that threatens to make our organizations irrelevant in the 21st Century. And if we don’t own up to it, future historians will talk about us as being a bunch of empty performers, like circus clowns or modern day minstrels.

Wow. Even for me, that was a pretty heavy statement. But think about this. In the early 2000s, I was lecturing on the Divine Nine at an Eastern college that shall remain nameless. A sorority member challenged me on my argument that stepping takes up too much our time and efforts in comparison to community service. So we did a quantitative breakdown of where her chapter hours were spent.

She calculated that her chapter practiced at least one hour a day, beginning in September, for a February step show, and usually more on the weekends. But for our argument, we conservatively estimated a two hours per day practice on Saturday and Sunday. That came out to around ten hours per week, or a total of 240 hours (10 whole days) devoted to stepping for one step show. She admitted that they participated in more than that show, and also did performances on their campus. I then asked her if there was any community service project her chapter did which took that amount of preparation? The answer was a resounding no.

Now before we go any further, I already know the arguments from fraternity and sorority members when it comes to stepping. I’ve heard them all before. Well, there’s no reason why we can’t do both, stepping and community service. Stepping is an important part of being in a BGLO. We raise money by stepping. Stepping creates brother/sisterhood. But it’s a tradition, and we need to keep our tradition going. This is just another attack on young members by an older member. Kids are attracted to stepping, and then are attracted to going to college.

Maybe. But the problem with stepping is that it has moved from being a reward for all of the hard work we’ve done through the year, and to become an ends to the means. I joke that if you took pledging and stepping away from some black Greek members, they wouldn’t know what to do with their lives.

And stepping has begun to gain a pseudo weight of importance that trumps its actual relevance. The whole Sprite Step Off kerfuffle, where white sorority members of Zeta Tau Alpha had the audacity to participate and win the grand prize, is a prime example. By the reaction in the black fraternal blogosphere, you would have thought that Zeta Tau Alpha had not only won a step show, but had also declared the Negro National Anthem to be their new sorority song, and the red, black and green their new colors. And then came back on stage to slap the mamas of every black person in the country, while declaring that black folks food is bland and without seasoning and they can do better. I could go on.

The point is that stepping, according to the research of Dr. Walter Kimbrough, author of Black Greek 101, isn’t even a particularly old black fraternal tradition. What we know as stepping doesn’t go back more than forty years at the most, and isn’t tied all of the myths I’ve heard black Greeks spout over the years. It doesn’t come from South African boot dances. It isn’t a result of World War II soldiers coming up and marching. Our founders didn't step. Yes, I actually had someone say that. Stepping is simply an evolution of probate shows, where dancing turned into stepping. That’s it.

So where are we now with the art form? Well, when stepping first was codified, the NPHC organizations were in full control of it. They ran the step shows. They created the rules. The money generated went straight into the coffers of the chapters, and was used for community service projects and scholarships.

Today? Often, the step shows are thrown by private promoters, relegating the BGLOs into the role of performer versus organizer. Instead of receiving 100 percent of the revenue, black Greeks get pennies on the dollar, a shiny trophy, and the bragging rights to say that they are the 2010 STEPTHEBEST champions! Meanwhile, the bulk of the money goes to the promoter, who usually gives some vague promise about donating “a percentage” to a charity.

And what about the money won by the performers? More and more, we’re hearing reports that the money doesn’t go to the chapter for community service projects and scholarships, but is split among the people on stage, something unheard of just ten or fifteen years ago. And let’s not even get into black Greeks who are old enough to have mortgages, kids with tuitions, and full time jobs, forming traveling “all star” step teams. It’s all become, in the words of the Monty Python crew, silly.

So is stepping evil? Of course not. I happen to love watching our organizations step. But if your response to the hypothetical Obama request was that you couldn’t give it up for something deeper, then you know that stepping has become overly important. And if that’s the case, black Greeks are sliding toward irrelevance. And there are no steps for changing that.

[Sapphire]

And on a silly side note, that picture of that Sigma in the middle is a really weird angle, funky puffed up looking pic. He looks kinda like the dancing baby from the early 90's. Giggle

[**Dea**]

And stepping has begun to gain a pseudo weight of importance that trumps its actual relevance. The whole Sprite Step Off kerfuffle, where white sorority members of Zeta Tau Alpha had the audacity to participate and win the grand prize, is a prime example. By the reaction in the black fraternal blogosphere, you would have thought that Zeta Tau Alpha had not only won a step show, but had also declared the Negro National Anthem to be their new sorority song, and the red, black and green their new colors. And then came back on stage to slap the mamas of every black person in the country, while declaring that black folks food is bland and without seasoning and they can do better. I could go on.

BEST paragraph on there!!!

tis all!!

[FatalDST]

LMAO....

[Sapphire]

Okay y'all... are greeks stepping into irrelevance? What say you?

[Coldfront06]

I don't have time to answer...gotta go practice for a step show!

[huey]

What is with you people and community service. We are not ACORN or the NAACP. We are fraternities and sororities.

[Sapphire]

I.hate.Cold. #tisall

[peppermint]

Oct 9, 2010 14:45:33 GMT -5 huey said:

What is with you people and community service. We are not ACORN or the NAACP. We are fraternities and sororities.

Then why get upset with aspirants who are only interested in the social aspects?

[**Dea**]

Oct 9, 2010 17:17:47 GMT -5 peppermint said:

Oct 9, 2010 14:45:33 GMT -5 huey said:

What is with you people and community service. We are not ACORN or the NAACP. We are fraternities and sororities.

Then why get upset with aspirants who are only interested in the social aspects?

Took the words right out my mouth!! I know chapters that even got mad at their school's webmaster for listing them as Social Fraternity/Sorority on the school's website....saying "we are service orgs!"

[T-Rex91]

Maybe. But the problem with stepping is that it has moved from being a reward for all of the hard work we’ve done through the year, and to become an ends to the means. I joke that if you took pledging and stepping away from some black Greek members, they wouldn’t know what to do with their lives.

This right here is sadly true and why we're going to hayle in a brick-filled handbasket.

If you do a pareto of how you spend your time with your chapter and step practice is near the top then yeah, you def have missed the point.

*looks around confused as to how we got here*

[Iceman]

Oct 9, 2010 17:17:47 GMT -5 peppermint said:

Oct 9, 2010 14:45:33 GMT -5 huey said:

What is with you people and community service. We are not ACORN or the NAACP. We are fraternities and sororities.

Then why get upset with aspirants who are only interested in the social aspects?

I understand what Huey is saying.

I respect Bro. Ross but think the piece was too over-analytical. If the younger members enjoy the stepping aspect of being a member, let them do what they do. I knew and know of many chapters who could balance the social and service side of things just fine. But also, let’s just be real - Everybody doesn’t join our Orgs solely to do community service or service projects in general.

Now granted, the word service comes with the territory, and it is expected (especially in Alpha – check the motto) as there comes a time for play and a time for work. But we can’t act like that is or should be every members sole motivation for joining. Who’s to say that someone is not performing service or charitable efforts already – whether own their own, through their Church, through their employer, or another organization they may be affiliated with.

It all may not be being done in the name of Alpha, Sigma, AKA, Delta, etc, etc, but the point of doing these things isn’t to see who can take the most credit for it, and whose name it’s in – Nah, It’s about the people actually getting the help in various capacities who may be less fortunate, mentoring those who have no guidance and helping developing leaders for the future. What difference does it make whose “name” you’re doing it under or even if you’re doing it anonymously as long as it’s getting done. People are still getting the help they need.

So again, while service comes with the territory, everyone didn’t join their Greek Orgs “just” for that reason alone. I always say that I personally pledged Alpha for the Brotherhood/Fraternal aspect of it first and foremost. Period. With that said, I also served the community while in my undergrad chapter nearly 15 years ago and do the same thing now in my current grad chapter because that comes with the territory of being an Alpha. But that wasn’t a huge selling point for me personally joining. And it didn’t need to be . That was something my father had already instilled in me prior to even going to college.

So back to the stepping thing - If the young Bros love stepping , and want to dedicate X number of hours to be the best at it on their yard or competition circuit (and the Alphas have never been too shabby when it comes to stepping), I say have at it. I don’t think any member should be dictated to as to how they should enjoy their membership. So as long as all of their mandated chapter programs (on campus and in the community) and academic goals are being met – Go get them trophies and that money! Enjoy your Undergrad Greek experience to the fullest. I know we did.

[DamieQue™]

Oct 7, 2010 17:12:50 GMT -5 Sapphire said:

Since we need some life in this section and Fatal's taking to long to post like she did on SH.

www.theroot.com/blogs/community-service-and-stepping/stepping-irrelevance

I’ve got a question for you. What if black fraternities and sororities were asked by President Obama to place a moratorium on stepping for exactly one school year? Instead of devoting the time toward practicing and performing steps, or attending step show for that matter, they would instead use that time to create an innovative community service project, something that has never been seen or done before?

What if he asked the average American citizen to put a moratorium on watching t.v. for one school year to devote (which is undoubtedly even MORE time than what is used practicing for step shows) to some equally faceless, nameless, amorphous, non-existent, hypothetical community service project? Here's what would happen. Nothing. You can't even get bamas to vote let alone actually use their time to do something (anything) philanthropic for someone else. Putting a focal point on fraternities and sororities serves what purpose? The lack of activism is everywhere - not just fraternities and sororities. So what have you proven if you prove that fraternity and sorority members are apathetic other than that they were culled from an apathetic society?

Farfetched, you say? Well, why not? I happen to think that stepping has become an albatross for many of our chapters, a beast that threatens to make our organizations irrelevant in the 21st Century. And if we don’t own up to it, future historians will talk about us as being a bunch of empty performers, like circus clowns or modern day minstrels.

What threatens to make us irrelevant is and continues to be membership selection. Not the periphery activities that we do, but the people WE select to do them. Period. It is exactly this sort of "Cant See the Trees for the Forrest" type analysis that has us collectively in the shape we're in today.

Wow. Even for me, that was a pretty heavy statement. But think about this. In the early 2000s, I was lecturing on the Divine Nine at an Eastern college that shall remain nameless. A sorority member challenged me on my argument that stepping takes up too much our time and efforts in comparison to community service. So we did a quantitative breakdown of where her chapter hours were spent.

She calculated that her chapter practiced at least one hour a day, beginning in September, for a February step show, and usually more on the weekends. But for our argument, we conservatively estimated a two hours per day practice on Saturday and Sunday. That came out to around ten hours per week, or a total of 240 hours (10 whole days) devoted to stepping for one step show. She admitted that they participated in more than that show, and also did performances on their campus. I then asked her if there was any community service project her chapter did which took that amount of preparation? The answer was a resounding no.

I realize all "time" is the same but is all "preparation" the same? It seems like he's conflating the two to be equivalent. A step show REQUIRES more time and planning than does a Blood Drive. That doesn't mean they can't both be executed efficiently or that one is taken more seriously than the other. I find this time expended = quality invested argument to be false.

Now before we go any further, I already know the arguments from fraternity and sorority members when it comes to stepping. I’ve heard them all before. Well, there’s no reason why we can’t do both, stepping and community service. Stepping is an important part of being in a BGLO. We raise money by stepping. Stepping creates brother/sisterhood. But it’s a tradition, and we need to keep our tradition going. This is just another attack on young members by an older member. Kids are attracted to stepping, and then are attracted to going to college.

And there's not ONE argument in there that's NOT true.

Maybe. But the problem with stepping is that it has moved from being a reward for all of the hard work we’ve done through the year, and to become an ends to the means. I joke that if you took pledging and stepping away from some black Greek members, they wouldn’t know what to do with their lives.

A reward? Is he serious?

And stepping has begun to gain a pseudo weight of importance that trumps its actual relevance. The whole Sprite Step Off kerfuffle, where white sorority members of Zeta Tau Alpha had the audacity to participate and win the grand prize, is a prime example. By the reaction in the black fraternal blogosphere, you would have thought that Zeta Tau Alpha had not only won a step show, but had also declared the Negro National Anthem to be their new sorority song, and the red, black and green their new colors. And then came back on stage to slap the mamas of every black person in the country, while declaring that black folks food is bland and without seasoning and they can do better. I could go on.

But you would only embarass yourself further if you did. Our own stupidity notwithstanding for even having participated in that foolishness, perhaps a more reasoned and indepth analysis of the response would reveal cultural dynamics that subsume more than just Greek life...

...or you could do it your way - ham fisted seems to work.

The point is that stepping, according to the research of Dr. Walter Kimbrough, author of Black Greek 101, isn’t even a particularly old black fraternal tradition. What we know as stepping doesn’t go back more than forty years at the most, and isn’t tied all of the myths I’ve heard black Greeks spout over the years. It doesn’t come from South African boot dances. It isn’t a result of World War II soldiers coming up and marching. Our founders didn't step. Yes, I actually had someone say that. Stepping is simply an evolution of probate shows, where dancing turned into stepping. That’s it.

Yeah - actually it DOES and yeah actually it IS. But hey... go with the ham fist... it seems to be working for you.

So where are we now with the art form? Well, when stepping first was codified, the NPHC organizations were in full control of it. They ran the step shows. They created the rules. The money generated went straight into the coffers of the chapters, and was used for community service projects and scholarships.

Today? Often, the step shows are thrown by private promoters, relegating the BGLOs into the role of performer versus organizer. Instead of receiving 100 percent of the revenue, black Greeks get pennies on the dollar, a shiny trophy, and the bragging rights to say that they are the 2010 STEPTHEBEST champions! Meanwhile, the bulk of the money goes to the promoter, who usually gives some vague promise about donating “a percentage” to a charity.

So then what exactly is your argument? Fraternities and Sororities shouldn't step because it's takes up community service time, because we reacted poorly more annexation of our culture, or because we don't get enough money out of it. It seems like you're just a

#StepHater

And what about the money won by the performers? More and more, we’re hearing reports that the money doesn’t go to the chapter for community service projects and scholarships, but is split among the people on stage, something unheard of just ten or fifteen years ago. And let’s not even get into black Greeks who are old enough to have mortgages, kids with tuitions, and full time jobs, forming traveling “all star” step teams. It’s all become, in the words of the Monty Python crew, silly.

If they can do it, enjoy it, and get something out of it - what do YOU care?

So is stepping evil? Of course not. I happen to love watching our organizations step. But if your response to the hypothetical Obama request was that you couldn’t give it up for something deeper, then you know that stepping has become overly important. And if that’s the case, black Greeks are sliding toward irrelevance. And there are no steps for changing that.

Another false equivalence argument. If Obama asked you to give up something you valued and you chose not to, that means that the value prop to you isn't compelling. The End. It is not necessarily some wide spread commentary on your values, or your relevance, or lack thereof in both cases.

[Cambist]

This is not about stepping...it's about this disassociative identity disorder we have in the Black community.

We want to be seen as service organizations but we don't REALLY want to do meaningful service.

We want to be seen as successful individuals and organizations that produce (or attract) successful individuals but the evidence of that success is often nothing more than a photo opp and a television spot. Rarely, do we engage in service that is on the level of our own self perception....

Let the kids keep stepping. It's fun and it's true that some good members are drawn to it.

I have to partially agree with Huey as well. It is true that we are not community service organizations (well, at least one is but...) As Iceman pointed out, the Alpha motto directly mentions our role as "Servants" but I don't believe that makes us a "Community Service" organization as the term is most commonly understood to mean.

We must differentiate ourselves from those organizations that simply provide services to the community (food drives, blood banks, fish fry's, etc...) and transcend into organiation that do more advocating ON BEHALF OF the community. This doesn't mean that we cannot participate or even initiate community service projects...not at all. Our undergraduates ESPECIALLY should participate, host, and sponsor such events and projects. They build character and give opportunities for leadership. But we shouldn't see these activities as the crux of our organizational existance.

Someone needs to invite LRoss to the board so we can have this discussion. I'm sure some (if not many) will disagree with me but then again...this is OO...I like it that way.

[Cambist]

Also, I agree with Damie...

...the problems are more about membership selection but also about our failure to properly evolve into the elite organizations we claim to be (which can either be a cause, an effect, or both of membership selection)

[Iceman]

@ Cam and Damie - Spot on Fellas. I agree.

[Vudu_Prince]

Oct 11, 2010 10:35:08 GMT -5 DamieQue™ said:

Oct 7, 2010 17:12:50 GMT -5 Sapphire said:

Since we need some life in this section and Fatal's taking to long to post like she did on SH.

www.theroot.com/blogs/community-service-and-stepping/stepping-irrelevance

I’ve got a question for you. What if black fraternities and sororities were asked by President Obama to place a moratorium on stepping for exactly one school year? Instead of devoting the time toward practicing and performing steps, or attending step show for that matter, they would instead use that time to create an innovative community service project, something that has never been seen or done before?

What if he asked the average American citizen to put a moratorium on watching t.v. for one school year to devote (which is undoubtedly even MORE time than what is used practicing for step shows) to some equally faceless, nameless, amorphous, non-existent, hypothetical community service project? Here's what would happen. Nothing. You can't even get bamas to vote let alone actually use their time to do something (anything) philanthropic for someone else. Putting a focal point on fraternities and sororities serves what purpose? The lack of activism is everywhere - not just fraternities and sororities. So what have you proven if you prove that fraternity and sorority members are apathetic other than that they were culled from an apathetic society?



What threatens to make us irrelevant is and continues to be membership selection. Not the periphery activities that we do, but the people WE select to do them. Period. It is exactly this sort of "Cant See the Trees for the Forrest" type analysis that has us collectively in the shape we're in today.



I realize all "time" is the same but is all "preparation" the same? It seems like he's conflating the two to be equivalent. A step show REQUIRES more time and planning than does a Blood Drive. That doesn't mean they can't both be executed efficiently or that one is taken more seriously than the other. I find this time expended = quality invested argument to be false.



And there's not ONE argument in there that's NOT true.



A reward? Is he serious?



But you would only embarass yourself further if you did. Our own stupidity notwithstanding for even having participated in that foolishness, perhaps a more reasoned and indepth analysis of the response would reveal cultural dynamics that subsume more than just Greek life...

...or you could do it your way - ham fisted seems to work.



Yeah - actually it DOES and yeah actually it IS. But hey... go with the ham fist... it seems to be working for you.



So then what exactly is your argument? Fraternities and Sororities shouldn't step because it's takes up community service time, because we reacted poorly more annexation of our culture, or because we don't get enough money out of it. It seems like you're just a

#StepHater



If they can do it, enjoy it, and get something out of it - what do YOU care?

So is stepping evil? Of course not. I happen to love watching our organizations step. But if your response to the hypothetical Obama request was that you couldn’t give it up for something deeper, then you know that stepping has become overly important. And if that’s the case, black Greeks are sliding toward irrelevance. And there are no steps for changing that.

Another false equivalence argument. If Obama asked you to give up something you valued and you chose not to, that means that the value prop to you isn't compelling. The End. It is not necessarily some wide spread commentary on your values, or your relevance, or lack thereof in both cases.

ROOO to this response here.

Just to piggy back on what Damie is stating, this article shows a clear example of either not knowing the history of our orgs or IGNORING them.

It's stepping today when yesterday it was our athletic teams, glee clubs (secular and religious), debate teams, fall summer and spring formals, boatrides I could go on. The pledge process became universal for all by the 1930's. When I read chit like this it has the possibility of coloring the thought of those who are aspiring. Some take credence in this foolisness while never taking a vested interest in reading the history of the organizations. Some may even use it as a monument of why they couldn't and or can't get down because the scope has changed when in reality it has not. The organizations did equal if not more social programs back in the day than community.

If folks from the 30's were around today they would probably ridicule the social aspect. They'd ask where are the basketball and football teams, why are inter-fraternal athletic leagues not organized, where are the glee club showdowns (<<where step shows originated by the way), debate teams, who had the best fall formal, spring formal, and boatride. READ our histories please. It's not hard at all and then you will plainly see the social aspect of our organizations compared to back in the day is laughable at best.

[Sapphire]

Yay, dialogue! I had to google subsume... Damie be using them big words.

[AKAShannon]

^Agree! Some serious adult conversation going on here! I love it!!!

[perroloco]

Two things: I have never agreed with Lawrence Ross on anything. He is the king of negative publicity. There is almost nothing affirmative that he ever has to say about Black Greekdom even though that has been his bread and butter the last 12 years. Criticism is fine but can it be evenhanded. He always takes the adversarial position, especially to communities outside of Greekdom. I really hate the sanctimonious, above it all attitude.

Maybe it's an Alpha arrogance thing, but Walter Kimbrough is the exact same way. He is the foremost trial expert witness against Black Fraternities in hazing lawsuits. He is actually paid to help destroy BLGOs. While his book was relatively informational, he was wrong on so many things, specifically about Omega Psi Phi, that it is laughable.

Lastly, Ross conflates two issues. He really needs to disabuse himself of the notion that college students are devoted to "service" over "social". For 18 to 22 yr olds, you don't need to join a BLGO to volunteer at a soup kitchen or deliver clothes to a homeless shelter. Neither are social/service mutually exclusive or in direct opposition to each other. With the exception of Delta, I don't think any of the other 8 were "designed" for primarily "service" functions. The Bruhs know where our service emanates.

[All Pledging Is Legal]

fuck community service.

[**Dea**]

WARNING: MOST of you will not like what I'm about to say....And excuse my outside opinion but I this kinda triggered something in my head. I chose to say it this way for a reason.

Oct 11, 2010 10:35:08 GMT -5 DamieQue™ said:

Oct 7, 2010 17:12:50 GMT -5 Sapphire said:

Since we need some life in this section and Fatal's taking to long to post like she did on SH.

www.theroot.com/blogs/community-service-and-stepping/stepping-irrelevance

I’ve got a question for you. What if black fraternities and sororities were asked by President Obama to place a moratorium on stepping for exactly one school year? Instead of devoting the time toward practicing and performing steps, or attending step show for that matter, they would instead use that time to create an innovative community service project, something that has never been seen or done before?

What if he asked the average American citizen to put a moratorium on watching t.v. for one school year to devote (which is undoubtedly even MORE time than what is used practicing for step shows) to some equally faceless, nameless, amorphous, non-existent, hypothetical community service project? Here's what would happen. Nothing. You can't even get bamas to vote let alone actually use their time to do something (anything) philanthropic for someone else. Putting a focal point on fraternities and sororities serves what purpose? The lack of activism is everywhere - not just fraternities and sororities. So what have you proven if you prove that fraternity and sorority members are apathetic other than that they were culled from an apathetic society?

I get what you are saying, and please forgive me if I'm wrong, but aren't you all supposed to be better than the rest of society? I mean, these young greeks get jackets and disown "civilian" friends because "Ima ___ now!"...WHY? I understand the weight of what it USED to mean to be an Alpha or an Omega or all the other orgs in between but what is it that sets you all aside from the rest of the world now? You guys go on for days about Dr. Martin Luther King being an Alpha....Brother such and such who did this in the community being a whatever....well tell me what Brother YOU are doing for us NOW???

Ppl look at you all to spearhead movements not because we've just pulled that out of thin air but because that is the legacy that you are were born into. Just like bystanders are...disappointed, for lack of a better phrase, when a person born into a family full of doctors and lawyers and rocket scientist decides to become a garbage truck driver! You were raised to be better.

YES, the people that have held you guys up are tied to other ppl as well....Yes, EVERY black person should feel inspired and empowered to go out and do better and be better because of the great things Dr. King, Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall, etc etc did for us....Yes, we all are responsible....BUT....don't look down your nose at me with your jacket on when you are doing nothing but riding the coat tails of people that actually made good use of those letters. People that would have used that networking ability not to see if such and such in California is really a "soror" or a "perp" but because somebody needs to speak out about the failed justice in the Oakland Bart Shooting! People that would and could come together with past lines of their own chapter and there be love above and beyond differences between the groups. People who saw something that needed to be changed and instead of sitting on FB and maybe hinting at it in their status actually called meetings and linked up with other orgs to make efforts to changing it!

But you are right, you all are simply products of a failed and careless society. How can you be expected to help others when you can barely help yourselves?

So yea, forgive me if I'm wrong and have maybe held you guys too high on my scale of admirable things/organizations. But I can tell you one thing, and this is coming from me, as a person who is, was, and forever will be attracted to the SERVICE aspect of life...I have seen the things this person writes about and I, as an outsider shake my head. YES, there is an over generalization in this article that will rub ppl the wrong way because I know a lot of greeks that have not and will not step but when something needs to be done to better their organization or the community in which the org operates their are right there. But you'd be a fool not to see what this gentleman is saying.

I've had the pleasure of being in town while many greek conventions were being held and I just smile at the older members who are so proud to walk the streets in their colors with their convention badges on....but then I see an ENTIRE UG chapter with members of which I personally know...who COULD afford to register but decided not to but STILL showed up in the city during convention to party and show off their new strolls.

No, I don't think this is just greek orgs...I feel this exact same way about various OES houses, chapters etc....but lawd KNOWS yall don't want to hear me ramble about them! LOL

Ok....I think I've said enough! Let the "lets throw rocks at the outsider" party begin! LOL!

[Chal™]

Very well said, Dea. And If anyone cares to dispute that, well, you can throws rocks at me, too

[Vudu_Prince]

Certainly I will dispute everything of course.

Again read the history of the organizations. These entities were not organized to change the world themselves but to GROOM those who would.

When you look at the civil rights movement from the outside you think well the organizations powered it when that's further from the truth. It was the indoctrination and grooming that allowed Men who were Omega's, Alphas, Kappa's and Sigma's women who were Delta's, AKA's, Zeta's and SGRHO's to work in concert with one another for a common goal. All had been groomed in the disciplines of Fund Raising, Formal Meeting protocol, Community Activism, Discipline and Discretion (Pledge Process) on the small scale in their local college communities. THIS is what the organizations were about. Omega Psi Phi was created to enrich the SOCIAL AND INTELLECTUAL aspects of college life for Black Men. The organizations were and are a proving ground a training if you may to send out men and women who can help bring about change. Who can go out and take a stand. This is true for the many women and men who are in the limelight and those who were in the trenches that we don't know about. Today with the fraternity's nationally mandated programs don't look at these as fruits of Omega's labor but merely training exercises for our Men to become " maker's of policy and molders of opinion" as Bro. Love so eloquently put it. On the grand and small scale, Uplift is always needed. If folk looking at those amongst us who affected policy on the grand scale as the only measuring rod for the authenticity of the organizations then you are missing the point entirely.

"It's easy to go along with the crowd but the man or the woman who carries civilization afar are the individuals who take leadership and go against public opinion if it's not in harmony with the highest ideals of the individual. Prove yourself to be a Man. Prove yourself to be a true Omega Man" Hon. Edgar Amos Love



This above statement can be transliterated and applied to every BGLO. If you don't know... ask someone who does.

[DamieQue™]

Oct 12, 2010 15:50:54 GMT -5 Vudu_Prince said:

Certainly I will dispute everything of course.

Again read the history of the organizations. These entities were not organized to change the world themselves but to GROOM those who would.

When you look at the civil rights movement from the outside you think well the organizations powered it when that's further from the truth. It was the indoctrination and grooming that allowed Men who were Omega's, Alphas, Kappa's and Sigma's women who were Delta's, AKA's, Zeta's and SGRHO's to work in concert with one another for a common goal. All had been groomed in the disciplines of Fund Raising, Formal Meeting protocol, Community Activism, Discipline and Discretion (Pledge Process) on the small scale in their local college communities. THIS is what the organizations were about. Omega Psi Phi was created to enrich the SOCIAL AND INTELLECTUAL aspects of college life for Black Men. The organizations were and are a proving ground a training if you may to send out men and women who can help bring about change. Who can go out and take a stand. This is true for the many women and men who are in the limelight and those who were in the trenches that we don't know about. Today with the fraternity's nationally mandated programs don't look at these as fruits of Omega's labor but merely training exercises for our Men to become " maker's of policy and molders of opinion" as Bro. Love so eloquently put it. On the grand and small scale, Uplift is always needed. If folk looking at those amongst us who affected policy on the grand scale as the only measuring rod for the authenticity of the organizations then you are missing the point entirely.

"It's easy to go along with the crowd but the man or the woman who carries civilization afar are the individuals who take leadership and go against public opinion if it's not in harmony with the highest ideals of the individual. Prove yourself to be a Man. Prove yourself to be a true Omega Man" Hon. Edgar Amos Love



This above statement can be transliterated and applied to every BGLO. If you don't know... ask someone who does.

Well said Que, well said. EXALT.

[DamieQue™]

Oct 11, 2010 19:39:29 GMT -5 perroloco said:

Two things: I have never agreed with Lawrence Ross on anything. He is the king of negative publicity. There is almost nothing affirmative that he ever has to say about Black Greekdom even though that has been his bread and butter the last 12 years. Criticism is fine but can it be evenhanded. He always takes the adversarial position, especially to communities outside of Greekdom. I really hate the sanctimonious, above it all attitude.

Maybe it's an Alpha arrogance thing, but Walter Kimbrough is the exact same way. He is the foremost trial expert witness against Black Fraternities in hazing lawsuits. He is actually paid to help destroy BLGOs. While his book was relatively informational, he was wrong on so many things, specifically about Omega Psi Phi, that it is laughable.

Lastly, Ross conflates two issues. He really needs to disabuse himself of the notion that college students are devoted to "service" over "social". For 18 to 22 yr olds, you don't need to join a BLGO to volunteer at a soup kitchen or deliver clothes to a homeless shelter. Neither are social/service mutually exclusive or in direct opposition to each other. With the exception of Delta, I don't think any of the other 8 were "designed" for primarily "service" functions. The Bruhs know where our service emanates.

damn... another good post. Bruhz are on it today.

[DamieQue™]

Oct 12, 2010 5:31:33 GMT -5 **Dea** said:

WARNING: MOST of you will not like what I'm about to say....And excuse my outside opinion but I this kinda triggered something in my head. I chose to say it this way for a reason.

Oct 11, 2010 10:35:08 GMT -5 DamieQue™ said:

What if he asked the average American citizen to put a moratorium on watching t.v. for one school year to devote (which is undoubtedly even MORE time than what is used practicing for step shows) to some equally faceless, nameless, amorphous, non-existent, hypothetical community service project? Here's what would happen. Nothing. You can't even get bamas to vote let alone actually use their time to do something (anything) philanthropic for someone else. Putting a focal point on fraternities and sororities serves what purpose? The lack of activism is everywhere - not just fraternities and sororities. So what have you proven if you prove that fraternity and sorority members are apathetic other than that they were culled from an apathetic society?

I get what you are saying, and please forgive me if I'm wrong, but aren't you all supposed to be better than the rest of society? I mean, these young greeks get jackets and disown "civilian" friends because "Ima ___ now!"...WHY? I understand the weight of what it USED to mean to be an Alpha or an Omega or all the other orgs in between but what is it that sets you all aside from the rest of the world now? You guys go on for days about Dr. Martin Luther King being an Alpha....Brother such and such who did this in the community being a whatever....well tell me what Brother YOU are doing for us NOW???

Ppl look at you all to spearhead movements not because we've just pulled that out of thin air but because that is the legacy that you are were born into. Just like bystanders are...disappointed, for lack of a better phrase, when a person born into a family full of doctors and lawyers and rocket scientist decides to become a garbage truck driver! You were raised to be better.

YES, the people that have held you guys up are tied to other ppl as well....Yes, EVERY black person should feel inspired and empowered to go out and do better and be better because of the great things Dr. King, Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall, etc etc did for us....Yes, we all are responsible....BUT....don't look down your nose at me with your jacket on when you are doing nothing but riding the coat tails of people that actually made good use of those letters. People that would have used that networking ability not to see if such and such in California is really a "soror" or a "perp" but because somebody needs to speak out about the failed justice in the Oakland Bart Shooting! People that would and could come together with past lines of their own chapter and there be love above and beyond differences between the groups. People who saw something that needed to be changed and instead of sitting on FB and maybe hinting at it in their status actually called meetings and linked up with other orgs to make efforts to changing it!

But you are right, you all are simply products of a failed and careless society. How can you be expected to help others when you can barely help yourselves?

So yea, forgive me if I'm wrong and have maybe held you guys too high on my scale of admirable things/organizations. But I can tell you one thing, and this is coming from me, as a person who is, was, and forever will be attracted to the SERVICE aspect of life...I have seen the things this person writes about and I, as an outsider shake my head. YES, there is an over generalization in this article that will rub ppl the wrong way because I know a lot of greeks that have not and will not step but when something needs to be done to better their organization or the community in which the org operates their are right there. But you'd be a fool not to see what this gentleman is saying.

I've had the pleasure of being in town while many greek conventions were being held and I just smile at the older members who are so proud to walk the streets in their colors with their convention badges on....but then I see an ENTIRE UG chapter with members of which I personally know...who COULD afford to register but decided not to but STILL showed up in the city during convention to party and show off their new strolls.

No, I don't think this is just greek orgs...I feel this exact same way about various OES houses, chapters etc....but lawd KNOWS yall don't want to hear me ramble about them! LOL

Ok....I think I've said enough! Let the "lets throw rocks at the outsider" party begin! LOL!

Given the length of your rejoinder I almost feel like I owe you a response in kind, if nothing else to address what I assume is a sincere expression of your impressions of Greek Life. However time will likely not permit me to do so while I'm still here in the office. So, if following my lengthy drive home, I haven't convinced myself that VP's response was enough (and honestly, in content, it really was) I'll come back and share some thoughts.

[Cambist]

VP said essentially what I was saying...it's about providing a training ground for our members.

I've never been one to beleive that we should spend an inordinate amount of time doing rudamentary service projects for the sake of doing them. Partnering with charitable organizations without a clear vision of how that partnership will enhance or add value to our membership is not productive. Of course the Musclar Distrophy Association wants to partner with a BGLO...it's a clear way to access a large population without the MDA expending the resources.

I have nothing against MDA...I just used them as an example.

I will use the March of Dimes as an example. Alpha has a national program called "Project Alpha" that addresses issues like healthy relationships, teen pregnancy, etc... The curriculum and program was written by a brother.

Every chapter conducts this program, in some form, on their campus or in their local area. So the MOD and Alpha invested money and it's resources to compile a curriculum, videos, an entire press kit, and so on and so forth to help structure the program start to finish. On the other side of this, Alphas participate with the MOD on division and state boards, hold leadership positions on local committees, assist in the raising of fund through organized campaigns, etc...

That's the type of give and take relationship that we should promote and i'm sure each organization has these types of symbiotic partnerships with charitable organizations. We help the community through participation with the organization and we get the benefit of networking opportunities, leadership training, fundraising training, etc...

I say this to highlight the point that we should not be so caught up in mechanics of conducting community service that we forget to use each opportunity to train leaders. I don't say that to mean we should take a "what's in it for us" attitude but then again....yeah, we should.

So once again....let'em step. We need to keep up the competitive yet fraternal spirit because once we stop having fun, it's game over....

I mean...it's a freakin fraternity for crying out loud!

[Iceman]

Old school OOA heads up in this thread dropping science. Good stuff.

I want to say something else to add on to all of this. Sometimes outsiders and even our own members are too quick to make a rush to judgment when they don’t see our members (especially younger one’s) live up their lofty perception of what they think they should be from the gate. I even hear it from the old (real old) heads in my Frat all the time.

It’s almost as if outsiders and some members expect that every new member that leaves initiation is going to dart out and become the next Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Roy Wilkins, Hosea Williams, Jesse Jackson, Ralph Abernathy, etc, etc, etc. Calm down people! I think someone already said it - these dudes are 18 to 21 years old and live in a society which is much different than it was 40 or 50 years ago. As already mentioned, the Frat can prove to be a training ground to help groom and enhance certain qualities within an individual to help them become effective leaders. But first and foremost, the “desire” has to be there within that individual for them to be that sort of “Impact” player in our communities, regions, or government.

But guess what? Not every member has that desire to be that sort of figurehead in the scope of activism or benevolence on behalf of our communities. Now does that make that member a bad, and unproductive member? I say no. This member can still work to carry out smaller mandated programs and goals of the Frat on a much smaller scale whether on his campus or in his community (whether financially active or financially inactive). Even if he is reaching back to give advice/encourage/motivate the younger Bros from his UG chapter, that is even something of worth and importance to the Frat as a whole.

“I mean...it's a freakin fraternity for crying out loud!” - Cam

Cam’s amusing, but also realistic statement makes me want to touch on something else that is too often overlooked. Sometimes we lose focus on the fact that we ARE fraternities. Let’s go back – ALL THE WAY BACK – to the primary reason some of our Frats were founded. We were founded to provide and promote Brotherhood (and camaraderie) amongst black students who were viewed as outcasts, were alienated against, and not afforded the opportunities that many other white individuals or white groups received on campus (at least at Cornell).

BROTHERHOOD. That is the first and foremost reason we came into existence. Although we have evolved and have taken on greater roles and responsibilities, we still need to partake in other activities that engage and foster that spirit of Brotherhood which do include SOCIAL (yes, that dirty little word) activities. How can you ignore the importance of Brotherhood and the activities that support it when it harkens back to our initial Inception:

“Our main purpose in 1906 was to found a fraternity composed of groups of undergraduates so chosen in the various colleges and universities that they would represent the best of the Negro Youth of that institution, banded together to help each other in the various essentials necessary for success in college: successful scholarship, healthful recreation and clean living”. – Jewel George Biddle Kelley circa 1936

(Sidenote - By definition: Recreation - the expenditure of time in a manner designed for therapeutic refreshment of one's body or mind; An activity that amuses or stimulates)

Jewel Kelley also spoke on the importance of “Brotherhood” even as it relates to older Bros working with and supporting our younger Bros:

“The graduate brothers should be eager to give more attention to the undergraduate brothers and help them to carry out programs consistent with their needs and wishes. In this way, the spirit of brotherhood, the main tenet of the Fraternity, will continue to exist." - Jewel George Biddle Kelley circa 1948

Again, it all starts back with Brotherhood. Allow new members to get a healthy dose of that and engage in various activities that support it, and their passion will grow and evolve to want to carry out the mottos (all of ours) of the Brotherhood we love so much. So if young Bros want to step, chant, and engage in other social activities that grow them closer – don’t chastise them for doing so. They are building something. And the mind of a 19 year old won’t be the same as when he turns 35, 36 or what have you. I’m sure if he still has that same zeal for the Frat later down the line, he will apply and express it in a different manner that is more becoming of his respective age.

Ok – my bad for the book folks.

[DamieQue™]

Historically speaking, yes, the founders and early members of most of the D9 orgs were elite. Consider the time frame, how many families could afford to send their children to grammar school in the early 1900s let alone higher education? Yes, among the ranks of early D9 orgs, there certainly were the affluent, the well connected, the best educated, and the future leaders of tomorrow. It stands to reason that the D9 orgs cultivate, mentor, and groom these people for the positions of leadership they would undoubtedly take.

Fast forward 90 or so years and tell me, is the college campus now what it was in the early 1900s? Do college populations now represent the elite as they did in the 1900s? No it doesn't... and why people don't make this distinction is beyond me. We are still training leaders & college campuses still remain the best place to find these future leaders - but let me emphasize - FUTURE leaders.

We live in a far different society than that which our founders encountered when they stepped onto campus. By means of circumstance and social order they were all forced to grow up a little bit faster, be a little more serious, be a little more focused, and a little more thoughtful in everything they did. They lived in a different time, that placed different demands on them. It is unrealistic to expect that a 19 or 20 year old that is a product of today's society is going to be a mirror image of what his/her counterpart was in the early 1900s or even the mid 1900s.

But that doesn't mean they won't grow into it. I guess I just don't understand why we are demanding a level of maturity and circumspection from young greeks that the current college population on a whole doesn't exhibit. Were I to be judged solely by my antics at Daytona Beach and Freak-Nik I guess I would also be summariliy dismissed as doing nothing for the community. But what we are as kids doesn't necessarily dictate what we'll do in the future (see Barack Obama). I would strongly caution against casitgating any or all members of BGLOs for not living up to your perceived standards due to the fact that they're young and enjoying the spoils of youth. Who among us is NOT guilty of that?

Regarding community service let me say, my chapter gives out literally thousands of dollars in scholarships and food baskets, EVERY year bar none. And yet South East DC is STILL South East DC. We haven't changed the poverty level, we haven't changed the crime rate, we haven't improved test scores. And we are a grad chapter that boasts millionaires, local politicians, business man, & entrepeneurs. What change do you suppose the local undergraduate chapters are going to create merely by giving up Stepping that one of the largest Grad Chapters in the Fraternity hasn't already done which has MORE resources, MORE man power, and MORE political connections? We're not blind to this guy's argument, we just know it to be without merit.

Greeks are a part of the Civil Right's Movement but we (the organizations) are NOT the movement itself. Yes we will often provide the individuals that provide leadership and organization skills to a movement - but our organziations themselves are NOT the movements. The movements are the people. They always have been. So if you think Greek presence has been limited concerning the BART shooting in Oakland, my question to you is where are the people? Where is the movement? What do you expect us to do that you won't do for yourself? That's a rhetorical question. I'm smart enough to know that's the society we live in now. The reward for our infantilization of generation after generation of American youth is the transformation of responsible adults into helpless wards who refuse to take any agency in addressing their own problems, but rather wait (with a sense of entitlement) for others to do something about it.