When most people choose to become affiliated with a fraternity or sorority, they hope to look back on it as one of the best parts of college.
However, as 35 anonymously reported stories go to show, there may be an extent to who can fully embrace this luxury.
Of the many instances of racial biases and microaggressions current and former students have documented on the @BlackatPepperdine Instagram page since July, issues in Greek Life are a recurring theme. The Graphic’s Grace Wood documented the lack of diversity in Greek life in fall 2019.
Posts include a sorority member wearing blackface, several instances of white members calling Black individuals the N-word, and the use of other derogatory terms such as “jungle fever.” Many of these incidents point to the presence of an implicit racially biased culture that makes it easier for students to act out.
“Being a Greek alumna and also a Black woman, it was a really difficult thing to read and reconcile with,” said Allison Green, assistant director of Student Activities and Greek Life adviser at Pepperdine. “I fully believe in the power of fraternities and sororities to be positive things, but it was really heartbreaking to hear firsthand those narratives from students who had those experiences with Greek Life members. It just created a lot of dissonance for me in the work that I do.”
Many members of Pepperdine’s Greek Life report feeling shocked as a result of the racist comments and actions among affiliated students, and the stories students posted on the @BlackatPepperdine account often match the challenges that Greek-affiliated people of color said they face on a normal basis.
The presence of racism in Pepperdine’s Greek life
Though the stories are almost all anonymous, the @BlackatPepperdine account highlights recurring issues that many people of color in these organizations can attest to experiencing.
“I’d say that my experience as a minority in Sigma Phi Epsilon would be like … I wouldn’t call it a microcosm but more like a magnified version of being a racial minority at Pepperdine,” said Cameron Franklin, junior computer science major and chaplain for Sigma Phi Epsilon at Pepperdine. “The same problems exist. It’s just in a smaller group and in a smaller setting, so they kind of come out a little bit more, you can see them a little bit more.”
Franklin said the notable amount of racial diversity among members of his chapter did not prevent the presence of cultural insensitivity. In the closed spaces that the chapter provides, some of the men feel slightly more comfortable with expressing their prejudices, which initially posed a social challenge for Franklin.
Members of color in other fraternities report feelings of isolation or judgment due to differences in racial background. It’s a national problem, Emily Davies wrote in a Sept. 17 Washington Post article.
Nationally, a growing number of students question the existence of predominantly white fraternities and sororities as a whole, Davies wrote. Nevertheless, a desire still exists among Black affiliated Pepperdine students to bridge the gaps that racial issues create.
“It’s kind of hard, in a community that’s mostly white and conservative, to get along with people,” said Isaac Osadolor-Hernandez, a sophomore philosophy and psychology major and Black member of Pepperdine’s Sigma Chi chapter. “Just the way you dress can convey a certain image about you. So maybe ‘He’s not that smart’ type of stuff, or ‘He doesn’t know what he’s talking about’ type of stuff.”
Osadolor-Hernandez said he was surprised upon reading the @BlackatPepperdine posts pertaining to Greek Life. His experiences with microaggressions at Pepperdine were often smaller, to the point that it was difficult for him to immediately speak out.
“When things like this happen, like racism or discrimination, it’s so quick and so subtle that sometimes it’s kind of hard to really think about what the scenario was,” Osadolor-Hernandez said. “It sounds hard to say but … you kind of get used to that stuff.”
Greek affiliated students react to @BlackatPepperdine
Many of the posts on the @BlackatPepperdine page came from Pepperdine alumni. A significant number of the Greek-related posts occurred before the current Greek life e-board members obtained their positions. Antonio Gutierrez, Sigma Chi president and senior business major, said he doubts members of his chapter would be racist, given how outspoken he has been on the topic of racial equity.
Sigma Chi has appeared on the page a total of eight times since July. Gutierrez made several public statements, many in the form of comments beneath the posts pertaining to his chapter, in an attempt to address and condemn the actions of these former members. He said the brotherhood aspect of Greek life can prevent members from holding one another accountable for their racist words and actions.
“It promotes this sense of blind loyalty to your brothers, where you’re supposed to be by your brother’s side at all times,” Gutierrez said. “If anything, in a Greek system, that’s what really can perpetuate this sort of toxic culture where people do something, and then instead of actually being held accountable, all their fraternity brothers come and run to their defense.”
Gutierrez said he believes the most productive way to approach the @BlackatPepperdine posts is to seek justice and accountability, rather than damage control. Similarly, a number of other sororities seem to embrace this idea by acknowledging the presence of a deeper problem.
“Our sisterhood needs to become more diverse. More actively inclusive. More equitable,” Pepperdine’s Delta Gamma chapter members wrote in an emailed statement. “We recognize this need, and we know that this commitment has not always been showcased as a top priority in our past … We promise to demonstrate that commitment with tangible action in support of all students from all backgrounds.”
Pepperdine students and Greek Life members take action to combat the issue
Prior to the creation of the @BlackatPepperdine Instagram account, the issues students raised pertaining to Greek Life went largely unreported. Green said she was disappointed that none of the students of color who had been victimized sought her help.
“I, in my time serving with Greek life and Student Activities, never had anything directly brought to my attention,” Green said. “It made it even more heartbreaking to know that these things were happening … and nothing was reported to me.”
Green said there exists a barrier between bystanders and the racially charged incidents they witness that prevents them from wanting to report issues. Fear, apprehension and even ambivalence are all possible factors that may inhibit a person’s inclination to take action.
However, the lack of reporting only accounts for one facet of the matter. There are still considerable improvements to be made within the structures of most fraternities and sororities on campus.
“I wouldn’t say that there are specific things in our current chapters that are blatantly racist, but there probably are things that aren’t fully inclusive or maybe create barriers for other folks that they perceive,” Green said. “So I think it’s important for us to take a step outside of our organizations and try and look from the outside in.”
Franklin said he relates to this sentiment. In the experiences he has had with Greek life, not all of the efforts made to help members feel included have been effective for people of less represented cultural backgrounds.
“I feel like there are ways to try and reach people of different backgrounds,” Franklin said. “At times, it seems like there’s a very monolithic approach, maybe where they’re just trying to approach people the way they’re used to approaching people that are the same skin colors … and then you have to realize that not everybody responds to that.”
Pepperdine’s Greek chapters’ newfound awareness of this barrier may mark the beginning of a step in a better direction.
Fina Garcia, chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee at Tri Delta’s Pepperdine chapter, said her sorority is responding to the issue by starting to learn more about racial injustice and intercultural awareness. The chapter recently met with the former DEI chair of Cornell’s TriDelta chapter in order to consider better ways to approach racial affairs going forward.
“We’ve been really careful of not making it the responsibility of other people to educate us, but find ways for us to do that,” Garcia, a senior accounting major, said.
Garcia is passionate about the issues that @BlackatPepperdine showcases, and is adamant about finding ways to inform her fellow sorority sisters on ways to break the stereotypes that cause a disconnect between Greek life and prospective members of color.
“One thing we’ve been working on is getting people more enthusiastic about joining Greek life,” Garcia said, “because I feel like a lot of people of color are just sort of turned off by the idea because of that fact that it’s known to be exclusive … It was created for white women and white men.”
Tri Delta is not the only chapter that has worked toward change in recent months.
Similarly, the Pepperdine chapters of Sigma Phi Epsilon and Pi Beta Phi each wrote in emailed responses that they have created new directors of diversity and inclusion, namely for the purpose of facilitating discussion in these areas. Members of Pi Phi have also completed a series of programs on identity development, power and privilege, and implicit bias.
“Our campus and community are not immune to the challenges of racial discrimination,” Caroline Chance, Pi Phi president and senior sports medicine major, wrote in an emailed response. “As a predominantly white organization, my chapter of Pi Beta Phi knows we must continually educate ourselves to know better and do better.”
Multiple e-board members said in their responses that there is much further work to be done than the actions taken during this semester alone. It’s evident through these statements that change doesn’t happen overnight.
“I wouldn’t say that we’re perfect at what we’re doing, or that we’re done by any means,” Fina Garcia said. “I think there’s always room for improvement … as the need comes, we’ll adapt and make sure we find ways to be helpful.”
Of the ten predominantly white fraternities and sororities on campus, eight of them responded with in-person interviews or emailed statements that can be found here. The Pepperdine chapters of Gamma Phi Beta and Psi Upsilon did not send in statements.
D’Artagnon Fulton completed the reporting for this story under the supervision of Dr. Christina Littlefield and Dr. Elizabeth Smith in Jour 241 in Fall 2020. Dr. Littlefield supervised the web story.
