I’m not really a fan of tearing people down or passing judgment on things with which I am relatively unfamiliar, so, luckily, the dirty work has already been done for me.
Last week, a Daily Iowan columnist discussed the UI’s dry campus policy and its negative effect on greek life. He dedicated much of his piece to explaining the process of rushing, the recent history of greek life on campus, and the perks of joining a fraternity or sorority.
He raved about “the benefits, friendships, and amazing experiences that greek life offers.” He wrote eloquently about greeks’ participation in philanthropic efforts and their dedication to community service. Boldly, he even confronted the elephant in the room: alcohol.
However, it’s important to keep in mind the underlying message of his column. Describing rushing, the quintessential greek activity, he wrote, “It’s a social contest in which the alpha male succeeds by spouting bullshit.”
This seems to me the premise and, sadly, maybe even the selling point of greek life.
The encouragement of heavy drinking, the surface-level community involvement, the patriarchal behavior (yes, this includes sororities), and the notion of paying money to be accepted into a social circle are only the beginning. More damaging even than the effects that these organizations have on their members — including a culture of conformity, the risk of liver damage, and the burden of membership dues — is what participants in the greek system do with their lives after college.
According to the National Fraternity of Alpha Chi Rho’s website, approximately 80 percent of the top executives of Fortune 500 companies are fraternity men, as are 76 percent of current U.S. senators and representatives and all but three presidents since 1825.
When you talk about the “system” — the one that is raping our planet, oppressing its citizens, selling us products we don’t need, and smiling all the while — you’re referencing a network of fraternity brothers and sorority sisters living out the questionable, or unquestioned, values they learned in college.
The kicker, of course, is that the greeks don’t deny the effects of their destructive lifestyle. They celebrate it. To deny the damaging effects wrought by the institutions that they will one day command is beyond ridiculous. Sure, some of the community work that some frats and sororities are involved with is benevolent and helpful, but people who are genuinely interested in serving others shouldn’t need to pay an organization to mandate that they do this work. Volunteers are supposed to volunteer of their own accord, not so that they can go to the next sorority formal.
I don’t mean to vilify the individuals who join greek organizations. I have a number of friends, coworkers, teammates, and classmates who have “gone greek.” However, the institution that they have joined survives and operates, as was written last week, by “spouting bullshit.”
Zach Wahls is a UI freshman.
