Hey angels! Finally here's my video on Bama Rush or also known as the University of Alabama Greek Life rush! Let's dive into my thoughts, what I've seen happen, how it works, and more
To be clear (and fair), not all sorority chapters have the same reputation. They are all expensive, to a point, but the social atmosphere is based on location. My sister was briefly a member of a sorority at a school on Long Island, NY. She left because she didn't have a lot in common with the other women, but the process of joining that "sisterhood" was very different from how it is at the University of Alabama.
As someone who grew up in 'Bama and is a member of the Divine 9; here's my take. The real reason for these sororities is to gatekeep a certain level of white Southern society. The aim is to uphold and perpetuate the artificial idea of Southern white womanhood. Most of these women will choose to live in the South where sorority membership will play a role in job prospects/business network/backing for political office, potential husbands (brother fraternities get 1st dibs), post university social clubs (ladies and country clubs), tips on how to buy into exclusive neighbourhoods and join the 'right' churches and contacts to the best private schools for their children. Many of these girls are from the wealthy 1%. They want to keep the money/influence in that sphere. Every once in a while, a not-as-wealthy girl will get in as a passion project (a la Mean Girls or Clueless). BTW - The money raised through fees and fines are for house upkeep (whether you live there or not), national and Pan-Hellenic dues and for the various parties thrown through out the year.
Exactly, nothing but rich white people stuff. I thought it was obvious, but i think ppl actually see it as a fun summer camp-type thing. Its not, its just exclusivity.
Yes I went to a school across the country where 80% of on campus students were involved with greek life. It was so difficult to find friends, all events were closed to me. The school hosted events were always super empty 😕 and you had to be invited to sorority events. I got the degree and did well but it was such a low point for me 😢 Like they had money, no student debt AND a big giant girl group to help and protect them for life and I was a world away from them even though we all were in the same classes 💔💀✋
That does sound damn simular how Burschenschaften work in Germany. With a different reactionary history (and in case of schlagende Verbindungen with more blood and scars). These organisations are historically male. For anyone who reads german: 'Elite sein' is a book by Stephan Peters about socialisation into and within those 'fraternities'.
as someone who's from a country where such things as sorority and fraternity don't exist, this whole thing is really wild to me. like... I went to university to study, not whatever this is
in my country most universities don’t even have a campus, just random buildings in the city (sometimes scattered around). Very few clubs too, if you want to make friends you just talk to the people in your class or participate in social activities outside university. Good luck on making me spend any money on any of this. As you said, this is wild.
UA and Ttown are a beast of their own creation. Living on the strip and slinging drinks for these sororities was an experience that will haunt me forever. Loved my alpha phi coworkers tho, they were a hoot. Bama rush was good money making week
honestly, not just sororities but fraternities both give me EXTREME cult vibes... the history of it and why they got started is very interesting yet disturbing.
and i'll also never understand why people this age have not matured enough to the point to want to become their own person, and not look/act like every single other girl. as a child it's understandable, trying to fit in. but i feel like most find people themselves before all this bullshit. i question their IQs
@@glitterbomb7896 Because the houses that don't do this cult behavior are always shafted by the ones that do because they collude for self-preservation. Secret societies are real.
When I was a sophomore last year at UCF, a girl who worked at the food pantry where I volunteered tried to convince me to join Pi Phi. When I did a Google search on UCF Pi Phi the first thing that came up was an article about the sorority being suspended for forcing a PNM to drink copious amounts of alcohol causing her roommate to call the police since she feared for her roommate's life. The next time I was volunteering while the Pi Phi girl was there I asked her about their philanthropy and she said, "it's about kids and books and stuff." Needless to say, after that I told her I thought Greek life was NOT for me.
Kid you not that same sorority in my town was also no longer recognised by Panhellenic because their hazing was exposed. They would need to drink a litter of liquor and eat a plate of spaghetti. Creates an insanely dangerous choking hazard.
I went to UCF as well but was not in a Sorority there. I was in Chi Omega at FGCU and transferred. Chi Omega at UCF wanted me to transfer and live in the but I was done with Greek life. I absolutely hated and it and wanted out. I have heard so many horror stories of Greek Life at UCF. In 2012 when I went there, so much hazing was going on. One fraternity lost their charter because they were hazing a member and they ended up killing him.
I was friends with this girl when I was little like best best friends, and our moms were friends. We both ended up moving to other states, losing contact. She was in my area YEARS later when we were both adults and we decided to meet up. She had gone from a sweet dorky funny light hearted person to a total snot nose BITCH!!!!! And I tried kinda asking about her life to figure out why she was such a stuck up bitch now and she mentioned that she was in a sorority. I honestly think it changed her. Like we were best friends who hadn't seen each other since childhood and she was the one who contacted me but she still had her nose turned up the entire time. Idc who comes at me I blame the sorority.
26:25 forcing young girls to wear dresses and prohibiting them from carrying bottles or cans at parties in favour of OPEN cups is wild to me! You cannot tell me that those rules were not written by men.
As someone who has spent a lot of time in curly hair communities, the “No wet hair” rule SCREAMS that its intended to keep out a certain ethnic minority who has hair that typically takes a long time to dry (women of color, specifically black women).
That it also might catch a few people of Irish descent when these households are from French and English stock were considerations at a time too. But yeah has an overt Jim Crow intent.
Tbh I don't think these girls have met and spoken to enough ethnic minority people to even consider how their hair might dry. They wouldn't need to set up such rules if they can just not recruit ethnic minorities in the first place (which they proudly don't)
Race has nothing to do with it. They want their girls looking perfection in public. They feel it reflects on the sorority of you go out in pajama bottoms and a messy bun. I agree it’s ridiculous, but it’s not ethnically motivated.
Luckily Alabama’s campus is so big and there are so many students, that I was able to stay away from this mess and have a great college experience. So glad you’re covering this!!
I was curious what it's like for girls/people who aren't rushing at schools like this, it's great to hear that you can stay away from this and not feel like you've missed out
@@natatatm while i will say this creator has some information incorrect, as far as experience for non sorority members (i was in a sorority at bama, OOS, on scholarship and i got invited back to max sororities every round, most of this bad stuff is just Old Row Sororities which i preffed two of but am really glad i did not go with) but some of my best friends were not in a sorority, and like you can still go to frat parties, and while Old row doesn’t allow it bc their homophobic, every other sorority lets you bring girls as your date for date parties so i brought my friends to date parties and like you can go to every bar and off campus parties and stuff so honestly you don’t miss out on a lot. I will say you can kiss any aspiration of student government or anything bc we choose every single person. so that sucks. but there are hundreds of clubs to hold leadership positions in and stuff so yeah don’t feel like you HAVE to be in greek life at alabama.
@@natatatmalso i will say they absolute ARE still involved in alabama politics. i went to a party at the current Mayors house for a TNE party and we absolutely helped with canvassing all the way up to Alabama congress. The men (think most Jason’s members) still interact with SB at Yale and others etc. And they pay to wipe all of this info.
What baffles me about the fees the sororities charge is that someone (or a group of someone’s) is constantly watching these girls to catch any minor infractions. That would creep me out, knowing I was constantly being monitored.
As someone who was in a sorority, there are definitely some ridiculous fees, but most of the ones Isabella read off from recruitment (even if they seem ridiculous) are actually supposed to be to prevent hazing. So you can't initiate a hug with a PNM, because if they don't want to hug you back, they will feel pressured to anyway to make a good impression. You can't let them leave with anything other than water, because it could be bribery to vote for that house higher, etc. The ridiculous rules with recruitment are supposed to make it as fair and safe and comfortable for the women going through recruitment. And it's also so you do not mislead and hurt any feelings unnecessarily. So the fines for following on social media or saying "see you tomorrow" are because it gives that person the illusion that you are indicating that they will be getting called back to that house the next day when you might not. It's a very complex process on both ends, and even if you, as an active member, absolutely love the girl you spoke to and give her a glowing review, there may have been 100 other girls that night who also got glowing reviews and was adored by the person who spoke to them, so the active member has no idea if their sorority's recruitment team will select the girl they talked to as someone to get an invite the next day.
The fees once you're in are pretty ridiculous as well, but at least in my chapter while I was in, we had a lot of discussions about not monetarily penalizing people for being poor (like fees for missing events because someone had to work). We had 3 excused days per semester to miss mandatory events for work, and 3 mental health excused days, amd if you had a job/internship/class where you would always miss an event if it was on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays after 4pm or something like that, you could get a special excused status where you wouldn't be penalized those days. And we also chose as a chapter to remove any late fees for dues/fines because again, that's just making you pay more for being poor. Many chapters and campuses still have that though which sucks.
Jeez, I haven’t heard “infraction” in years. That takes me back. I was fined $50 for missing a sorority event because I didn’t notify the member in charge of fines that I was performing in a musical production the same night. I was also fined for $100 but I can’t remember why, I just remember it was stupid.
Keeping up appearances is part of the social expectation. You are never allowed to show weakness where anyone else might see/hear and tell others. It's a culture of toxic gossip mills.
Sorority life is like being a cult. There’s the secret Greek names, secret hand shake and secret meetings. During rush, we were forced to wear a white blouse and black pants with a blue ribbon. If that ribbon was not wore, you would get in trouble and discipline. Also, you would need to memorize all the FULL names and Greek names of all the girls from that sorority. Also, there was a night that they blind folded us and took us up a mountain. When we got there, they gave us candles. They did a ritual and gave us our new Greek names. Only the sorority could know our names. Mines was Thetis. I was chosen to be like the sorority “mom” to help the rush girls (I was still rushing). One time my brother was in the hospital and they told me that sorority family is more important than my family. At that point, it was a wake up call. I left the sorority. After that, they would look at me differently but I was happy to be free. Honestly, those rituals are no joke. Is like asking a demon to enter your life. The ritual finalizes, “you are no longer (name) now you are (Greek name).”
I was at the University of Alabama from 2013-2017 when there were several cases of racism in the sororities at UA that went mega viral. I was NOT in a sorority, and when I found out how much people were paying in dues each semester, I just felt bad for them. I feel like they were brainwashed into believing they needed to rush and they spent so much time, energy, and money just to be micromanaged. I enjoyed my time at Alabama and boy am I glad I never rushed!
Oddly enough, it's not about racism as people think. I went to Alabama. It's ALL about WHO your family is. Most of the girls in the sorority got in because their family members were in. I never rushed cause I knew I had NO chance since I didn't come from a wealthy, old money family. Because that's what it is.
@@bluesageful well yeah, legacy is one thing but there were several instances between 2013-2016 of blatant racism in the sorority admissions. I met someone in 2013 who was wanted by every active member in a sorority and the alumni were the ones who shut down her admission because she was Black. She had the grades, extracurriculars, social life, AND her family was very integrated in the University of Alabama administration. That’s not a case of not having enough prestige. She was literally denied because she was Black and the alumni thought it would give the wrong “look” to have her in the sorority. I went to Alabama. Racism isn’t as big a deal as people want to believe, but it definitely was a prominent issue when I was a student there.
I'm French, and man, I really am trying to understand all this and how it could even be legal, but it is very hard. It is amazing that despite globalisation there are still some weird cultural specificities that come with certain countries.
i went to school in a northern college town, one of my best friends was in a sorority. she said they were required to wear white to their weekly meetings, were not allowed to make instagram posts without approval, and underclassmen were required to share large rooms and bunk beds w 18 other girls (even if they paid to live in the house). they also had select fraternities that they were required to make appearances at every weekend. she eventually got kicked out for being uncooperative lmao
We were only allowed to wear certain colors as well. We had to get permission on what we could post on social media. I joined a sorority in 2012 so TikTok wasn't a thing and social media was not as prevalent as it is now. To get into our weekly meetings we had a secret handshake. We were not allowed to talk to anyone outside the sorority about these meetings and what was said. The list goes on.
That legitimately sounds like my personal nightmare! No thank you! I don’t think I’ll ever understand how anyone could find that appealing. You are a full grown adult, and you are WILLINGLY paying tons of money to be told what to do, how to act, how to dress, how to look, and who you are allowed to associate with. I just don’t understand. You can form lifelong friendships with people for free and do incredible work with charities on your own without the insane rules, control, fees, favoritism, hazing and bizarre rituals. It’s just mind boggling to me.
@@rebeccaconfare787 And the stupid thing is that formal meetings don't contain anything much that non-Greek folks would be interested in, just some esoteric language and secret handshakes. Well, maybe the public would be curious to see the robes and decor. Initiation rituals is a different story though. When I was initiated, when they took our blindfolds off, my fellow initiates said they had a hard time not laughing because the costuming was so absurd.
Thank you for touching on the racism aspect of these predominately white sororities. That is why historically Black fraternities and sororities provide safe spaces to support Black college students who seek the community. Edit: To clarify, I use 'safe' to refer to the alternative space and support system offered by Black social groups on campus. I am not denying the existence of hazing that occurs while rushing regardless of race.
The same thing happens in black and Latino sororities. People just don’t shine the light on them. And this is coming from a personal experience. They are all the same. Doesn’t matter what race.
Don’t be fooled. Many D9 sororities and fraternities do the same things. When people speak badly about their experiences or of hazing, they are shunned. It’s a similar process just with a different group of people.
I'm not denying the existence of classism, colorism or hazing that may exist across all fraternities and sororities. I'm clarifying that Black sororities and fraternities offer Black men and women an opportunity to rush without the overt racism present in predominantly White spaces.
@@carlastone3937 I don’t think you have experienced or seen what I’ve seen. Black sororities have discriminated against Asians, Latinos and whites. They are all the same.
Loved the video. Being a Black Woman in her early 20's, it makes me feel like I'm not good enough. I know in some cases sororities can be beneficial. It's just upsetting how the deep south will always be just that...The deep South. I'm from Tennessee, but I live in Colorado, and I personally feel like I've gained more knowledge and understanding of other cultures due to where I live. I think the most upsetting part is that...Being a black woman, I'm already looked at as ghetto due to my skin and where I'm from, but if I talk proper or act too "classy", I'm "Bougee" or ". I wish somehow, we could change the narrative. I wish I didn't have to feel like I have to lower myself to fit in to certain groups. Unfortunately, I will always be looked at as the Angry Black Woman (ABW) just because of my skin. It's truly unfortunate but choose to embrace rather than dwell. Isabella, you are freaking amazing, and I think it takes guts to come on here and talk about the "Hush Hush" when it comes to being a part of a sorority. Especially one in the deep South. I saw only two Black women in this video which is very upsetting. But I also didn't see any Hispanic or Asian ethnic women either. Go you and please keep educating people on situations that aren't talked about. Warmly, A Fan
Right? As a Bw, these sororities' demographics/looks/values are such a blatant perpetuation of w. supremacy. It's very depressing to see how little, the deep South has progressed. The fact, that they use so much hiphop/rap culture in their chants/dances is just adding insult to injury imo. Edit: desegregation in 2013?! What a joke.
Thissss! Like as black people, if we “act black” then that’s equals to being ghetto and hood, even though not all black people are from the hood and the ghetto and some of them, live pretty wealthy lives. However, if we act “classy and proper” then we’re acting “boujee, and white” like as if white people are the only rich people out there.
As a fellow black woman, I understand you sentiments. I ask this question out of genuine curiosity and as a member of the D9, but did you not feel like you would fit into any of the 4 D9 sororities or were they not available at your school?
Eh, us Hispanic women don't care to make ourselves a victim like you black people do. I should say "black American/westerners " because black people from Africa are* just on a whole other level.
I think it's just not for us, paying to be an exception, I'm starting a type of Podcast channel to talk about American and world culture. As a non American I've noticed how southern people have a very controlled way of being that's learned. I'm sure it has a lot to do with history and my channel will be talking everything from grits to hot combs. Just reply here if you're interested in co-hosting,
I go to my stat's flagship school, I've been able to avoid ''Greek life'' (tbf the only reason it's called Greek Life is because they use Greek letters.) but there are so many organizations that you can join are not like sororties. I'm in a history society, honors society, and several other small clubs. The only real 'fee I had to pay was $100 max for the history society. I personally never stood this culture myself either
Hello Isabella, Thank you for talking about Bama Rush. It dominated my TikTok timeline last year. 🤦🏽♀️ When I was younger I resisted joining a sorority because of the horror stories I heard that pledges went through while rushing. In 2022 I became a member of a service sorority (not apart of the Divine 9) whose primary goal is to serve and give back to the community, also its primary focus on education of women. There were no crazy antics or crazy requirements in which to join the sorority. I am glad that I waited until adulthood to find an organization that spoke to what I am passionate about, which helping those who are less fortunate than I.
A friend who got into her sorority of choice got put in a psychiatric hospital for 72 hours due to a claim from another sister. No one really verified whether or not she did what was claimed. So I view sororities with a jaundiced eye because of her experience.
Hi! I used to be a University staff member who advised fraternities and sororities for five years (historically white and Historically Black/Latino/Asian/multicultural), and advised on the Panhellenic recruitment process at the university level and as a volunteer of my sorority. This is SO complex, and the criticisms are completely valid (I NEVER liked the recruitment process, it's insane). If you ever wanted to chat more about this with someone who used to work in this area, and get a brutally honest about it, let me know! I'm happy to provide any and all information I can. Really great video! - Olivia
I never wanted to join a sorority until I ended up pretty far and by myself for college. I ended up choosing a non panhellenic sorority that was SUPER cheap and we used a lot of our dues for a retreat weekend in the semester, and the rest went to just small events we had (like food) but other than that I loved it and I had great friends out of it. Not EVERYTHING was perfect. But again, i wasn't in a panhellenic sorority 😂 idk if I would have said the same if I was in one
I was in a nontraditional / non-panhellenic sorority. My dues were like $180 a semester I think, and I probably spent another $50 each semester on events/t-shirts/whatever (plus a little more the semester I had a little, but that was also because I was a little over the top about it). I also went to a small liberal arts college in the upper South, so the culture was very much that everybody had other things they did, even my friends in panhel sororities with $600 dues.
I had a friend join a sorority her 2nd year, and it felt like she disappeared from my life entirely. So many demands that she was losing sleep, her friends outside the sorority, and keeping up with her classes due to required events she would have to attend. Some weren't even specified as mandatory but was very much implied that if you didn't join you were probably looked down upon and talked about behind backs.
I’m in Ohio and was in a sorority. I will say, most of my bridesmaids were my sorority sisters. But, it could be stressful at times. Northern sororities are a lot more chill than southern ones. Definitely not this intense.
sec schools are a different BREED, my sorority gets hated on bc of our focus on academics and pride celebrations. Alabama scares me so much istg i would never rush there.
I was a Pi Phi at the University of Michigan and it was definitely NOT like this. Many girls didn't drink or party. Academics was extremely important. Very little drama. I loved it!
I'd say it's more like a Venn diagram of sorority girls and RUclips influencers. They're a dime a dozen on YT now, aside from one particular influencer who got kicked out of her sorority because she made some major racist language faux pas.
People should be around whomever they are comfortable. As a black woman I can assure you that I'm not trying to be apart of a predominantly white sorority and I don't care if they don't want me there. I enjoy being around women who are like minded including culturally. Differences are good but it shouldn't be something that is forced.
I’m intensely introverted, neurodivergent, have medical issues and other mental health issues. I didn’t have a roommate. I didn’t play any sports or have any special skills like art or mathematics going into college. I STILL MADE FRIENDS And we are still friends 8 years later. You don’t need to pay for friendships.
Not all American unis have sororities/frats! One reason I chose the school I did is bc it was >5k students in all, no football team, no Greek life. But yes, a lot of American life is about competitive individualism
The US and Canada are so large that it's more so self imposed competition in the weird niche that you like. Even then it's not really competitive. It mostly depends on your personality, ambition and wanting to challenge yourself.
My sorority experience was so different from Bama Rush or other prominent ideas about being in a sorority BUT I totally agree that the system is set up to fail a lot of people, from the dues, the strict (and often arbitrary) rules, to the fact that most universities wash their hands clean of Greek Life by letting the chapters govern themselves. What could go wrong with 100+ 18-22 year olds running an org, handling money, and enforcing rules in secrecy while also attending classes full-time?
literally sooo glad you had a good experience! I hate when people have bad experiences. I agree its kind of become a mess in some places and its really sketchy
Also, to provide more tangible benefits of Greek Life in general, at my University, about 30-40% of the campus was in a Greek chapter and university leadership was generally supportive of Greek Life because, what they had seen statistically was that students in Greek Life had higher rates of retention and graduation, higher levels of campus involvement, specifically in non-Greek organizations and activities, and higher average GPAs. But I think this also depends on the quality and oversight of the Greek Community. Our Greek Life Office and community emphasized school, community involvement, and leadership and thereby were active in helping students apply their experiences outside of their chapter.
Agreed! I think its really campus dependent, lookin at southern sororities are so different then where I went in the Northeast (also definitely no parents money in my college life lol) - but as an adult I've distanced myself from the International Headquarters part of the organization, especially because some of the problematic things highlighted in the video I do think are correct. As a person who moved to the other side of the country by myself with no support I did value the local group here I was able to fall in with and immediately find my people where I live now.
After I graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi, I became an enforcement agent with a state agency. I remember on one operation, we were driving back from an overnight stakeout around 4AM, and on the highway, we passed a girl, blindfolded and tied to a sign! We went by fast and thought it was a "dummy" someone had tied to the post, but we weren't sure, so we crossed over to the other side of the highway to turn around and go back. It was a young woman, tied up and in shorts on a very cool morning. As we were untying her, a car with a bunch of sorority girls pulled up, laughing. They said this was part of rush!
I went to the University of Southern Mississippi in the early 80's. I remember someone recruiting for a sorority and she claimed that being in a sorority would guarantee a high grade point average, because, "all our girls have a high GPA." Well, that was because they kicked out anyone who didn't keep a high GPA! Duh.
Yeah, just like the S&P 500. The stock price always goes up because they (S&P) drop their worst companies all the time. If their price ever goes down then they start doing "corrections". I say this because it never truly ends until mankind does.
@@IsabellaLanter I should probably also mention I wasn't in a housed/social sorority. I was in a service organization (we had no house). I do think living in a housed greek life organization probably WOULD make the members feel like they have to eat, sleep, and breath their organization every day. I was in an unhoused service sorority. I can't speak to a social one, since I wasn't in one. But I think having an unhoused sorority was probably the BEST thing for an organization to be. Being in a house seems like there would just be a lot more unsaid expectations expected from you.
I was in for 3 years. The reason I pledged was because they said that there was a network that made it so all the girls left with a good job that you have to know someone to get. After 3 years of having everything about my life controlled, I left with no job or help. I did all of that for no reason.
Saammmeee I joined a D9 Black Greek organization but it turned out the exact same! I decided to just denounce and request my membership be ended and throw away all my crap so I don’t have to be reminded how much time I wasted🤣
That happened to my boyfriend, he was a pre-med student and told his frat brothers he needed a break to focus on bettering his grades to get into medical school, and they all stopped talking to him completely 🙄
I pledged in my sister's sorority at a time in my life when I was suicidal. The sorority was a Cult. It fit the BITE Model perfectly. -I left after one semester and got help for my mental well being. I credit that experience for how I avoided MLMs and other Cult like experiences. I felt the same red flags and ran the other direction. Nothing about this video surprised me.
It's basically a pageant. I used to work as a makeup artist for pageant girls. This is just like Miss America, but you have zero down time and you can never turn off. Greek life is for nepo babies to have something to put on their resumes so that later on, in the corporate world, they can step on people who didn't have daddy's money and advance because of their sorority and not their own merit.
This is the most stereotypical take I've ever read. Bama (and the SEC in general) is a different animal when it comes to sororities. I went to a school in the northeast, joined a sorority with about 15 members in the chapter, and I gained such important skills and leadership opportunities. My dues were about $150/semester - which I paid for myself with the money I made at my job - and we didn't have a sorority house. I'm still involved with my organization 20 years later, and I've volunteered in numerous capacities and have met so many wonderful women of all ages.
Hi! Black woman that joined a "white" sorority in michigan here! For sure I alway made the joke that I was the chosen black sista. They all knew i was joke. I joined a sorority my junior because many of my friends were graduating at once and really needed some friends(and maybe some underline abandonment issues). I lucky joined one that alot of the members were like me. Quirky, not as girly, random, and diverse. Yes, some of the other sorority had your typical ascetic but they seem more accepting then the ones on this video. In the sorority my rush group had a girl in a mechanical wheel chair and a Muslim woman that wore a hijab. I know sorority is crazy serious down in the south but up north at my school its like 'hey, pay your due (that are no where near $1000), follow our rules that any reasonable person is doing already, and don't be a dick.
I really wanted to join a sorority in college. My university had 19 sororities and i did the first stage of rush where we visited all houses and ranked preferences. For that stage of rush we were provided shirts that everyone wore "to even the playing field so expensive outfits didn't influence" or whatever, but clearly the rich girls made sure to have their expensive bags, jewelry, jeans, etc. Only 5 or 6 of the houses had air conditioning, so that heavily influenced my decision 😅 i ended up dropping out before the next stage because i had to work at least 30 hours a week and would have missed so many events/ been fined. That, plus i was having to take out loans for school, there's no way i could also afford dues and activity fees, etc. Lastly, my anxiety and rejection sensitivity couldn't handle learning which houses didn't want me.
In my adult experience, the benefits of Greek life are shallow network connections to the ultra wealthy. It means continued expensive involvement in Greek events in order to have a shallow way to connect to others
I grew up in D.C. So prior to going off to uni, I went to the Library of Congress (in person with my official library card) and requested the pledge manuals (and even initiation rituals, ect) of every Greek organization that was on my campus. Then I photocopied the interesting bits. The LOC has everything, you just can’t take it out of the building. The super old scrolls are in there, those you can’t photocopy, but I found it extremely entertaining and enlightening. I avoided the one that made people wear only white underpants and “special socks” from their big sis and sleep in a coffin covered in astroturf. It wasn’t the coffin. I’m not claustrophobic, I just legit can’t sleep wearing socks. I also avoided the one that made pledges carry around a large dead fish for a week during hell week…..my campus had massive hazing. Insane hazing. Sleep deprivation, you could only go to the bathroom when told, they forced you to listen to the same song on repeat for 7 days. Non stop. Day and night. Tons of manual labor….it was brutal.
@@SigridStorjernI wasn’t in a sorority but wish I was. A lot of jobs and job connections can be made after you graduate. Most job applications ask for your fraternity or sorority chapters. But also you can get internships and connections made before graduation.
"Most job applications" What the hell kind of jobs are you applying for?? That has not been on a single application I have ever seen. I'm now a hiring manager for software, and if I saw someone list a frat on a resume I would probly ignore it. (Though if they had a leadership role or a lot of associated service, I'd look at it like any other unpaid similar experience.)
@@jensing89 yes, that was a massive part of it where I attended (which was not Alabama). Getting a job from Greek life connections made it sooo much easier!
@@jensing89 For what I understood, you can network too joining clubs and such, and it's less expensive and probably a whole lot less detrimental for your mental health if things go sideways. Also, i too never heard of this being asked in a job interview/resumee
I always felt it seemed like paying for friendships with insane requirements. I don't doubt that many people made lasting friendships, but I always thought dues, fines, and forcing girls to interact with fraternities was predatory.
after being socially rejected my whole childhood, i was so proud of myself for getting into one of the top 3 sororities at my university, (i’m good at interviews lol.) i was so excited for sisterhood and philanthropy … truth be told i’m not really the type lol but i think i wanted to be … at minimum i just wanted friends in college my poor parents paid a bunch of money just for these girls to also socially reject me 🥲 i quit after i was one of few who didn’t receive a little sophomore fall 🙄 college didn’t go well for me, that was my last year.
The striking similarities between this and the culture/practices of most MLMs (ridiculous financial commitment, time commitment, culty behavior, shady leaders/founders) tell you everything you need to know!
One of the benefits of being in Greek life that isn’t often talked about is that if you want to get into politics, it’s damn near impossible without Greek life. I think it’s something like 75% of politicians in the US were in some sort of Greek organization. Also, legacy (former) members often provide connections, for example, getting into top law schools, med schools, landing interviews for competitive jobs, raising money for political campaigns, etc. So, even though the whole thing is wild, it actually can be a huge investment, depending on what you wanna do with your life, which is absolutely insane to me but it be like that. Edit: to be clear this is NOT an endorsement, just an explanation of why the institutions are still so influential despite the widespread (very valid) criticism.
This makes it seem that the system exists so that people in power can make sure that the next generation of people in power is as much of a carbon copy of the previous one as possible.
i thought that was the most popular benefit? the networking, i wanted to join a Panhellenic sorority because i just assumed most of the girlies were rich and had parents in politics or ones who ran businesses that could help w securing a job lol
There’s also *a ton* of videos on RUclips titled “denouncing my sorority” or “denouncing my fraternity”. There’s a lot of weird witchcraft that’s happening during the hazing process and these initiation rituals that most of us (the general public) had no idea about 🥴. Soooo creepy, I’m really proud of these people for speaking out about this.
Some of the rituals are easily visible online if you know where to look. Having been in a sorority (not Divine 9), I can tell you there's a lot of weird shit going on in those rituals, and as much as they publicly state they're totally Christian, the vows in the ritual are anything BUT Christian. I've heard that in the last few years, more sororities are re-writing ritual to make it sound less like pagan god/goddess worship, but that's not the case for all of them.
My roommate (at a small university) joined a sorority her sophomore year and became a totally different person. Convinced me to rush the next fall. I was only eligible for half the sororities because many didn’t accept engaged people and then I got kicked out of rush because I couldn’t get off work the third night. Dodged a bullet lol.
Coming from a country in Europe where all the "respectable" universities are public and free (but with intense entry exams), and going to a private school is seen by majority basically as not being smart enough/being lazy and getting your parents to buy you a diploma, the USA system of higher education is really wild to me. Here there is no greek life, no campuses, no student debt, a completely different approach. I must admit though, I couldn't believe what I was hearing the first time I ran into the concept of greek life, it seemed so old-fashioned and culty. I'm glad to see in the comments that a lot of people had a positive experience but to me, it has lord of the flies vibes. Mixing cliquey behaviour, money, power over people, segregation and young insecure students seems like an obvious breeding ground for all kinds of problems and trauma.
Same here, I get that it‘s just a very small privileged part of US society that does the greek life thing, but still. I‘m about to graduate with no student debt because university is free here as well, and it‘s a blessing. Personally this Rushing Week would be a great backdrop for a A24 style horror movie a la Midsommar, it really suits that whole vibe and aesthetic.
Same in my country (maybe we are from the same one). I'm glad that I was able to study in the best universities of the country, because I was only able to do it because they are public and more affordable.
Yep, I really didn't get it watching American highschool movies, wondering what is spring break what is this kappa kappa goo, but I did think the girls all looked hyper feminine and chirpy
I went to a small private college and somehow all the sorority girls were actually really nice and cool and ALL looked very different. All shapes, ethnicities, sizes, etc etc. It was pretty refreshing. They all were also required to do various community service events each month. I wasn't in one (I CAN'T live with other ppl and I refuse to be policed) but it changed how I saw all sororities. Some DON'T suck!
Just cuz they smiled and were nice doesn’t mean they meant it. It could’ve been fake as hell. You don’t know what they really thought of you behind your backs.
The recommendations are meant to make sure only people who are willing to jump hoops and know how to jump hoops are applying (of course it does help to know that you are pre-selecting someone that is already connected to your group). It means you are starting off with a group if people who are willing to ignore their own comfort and thought for a goal. You then tighten the screw further by setting absurd tasks (the more absurd - abd embarrasing- the better) to weed out the next level of people ready to ask why. The deeper you go into the process the more you end up with people who do not question (quite often do not know how to)... then sunk cost fallacy hits... welcome to the MLM, wait, welcome to the cult, sorry, sisterhood.
Isabella, you are so pretty and smart and it warms my heart to see you speak out against the sketchy and horrible parts of sororities. I feel like you will be able to reach young women before they get sucked into it. Thank you for what you do ❤
That consultant seminar meeting thing reminded me SO much of those MLM zooms!😮 I also notice a similarity between mlm and sorority recruitment in the way a shiny perfect image is portrayed. All the girls smiling at all times and have to look a certain way.. etc.
a childhood friend of mine was on the “board” (idk if that’s the right term) for her sorority as a sophomore. she was the youngest on the board. one night, the PRESIDENT of the sorority came in absolutely WASTED and shouting, and straight up PUNCHED ANOTHER “SISTER” IN THE FACE. Days later, they had a vote on whether or not she (the president) was going to be able to keep her title as president or not. The vote came down to my friend (who is a very prim & proper rule follower; def the type to become a US senator one day) and she voted against the president. The president that busted up into the house slurring and shouting and socked a “sister” in the face. The ENTIRE SORORITY turned on my friend and basically shunned her for making a reasonable decision based on the sorority’s own code of conduct. That’s how a lot of sorority’s work.
sorority / fraternity culture in the usa has always been so fascinating to me! i never knew you had to pay for anything--just thought it was a club you could join that included a dorm. these groups have a pretty bad reputation in the ph because of their infamous 'hazing' processes. it's unfortunately not unusual for someone to die so it makes the news everytime it happens. this rlly propogated a fear for these groups + we are heavily discouraged to join in case we are recruited. i don't even know where to find one even if i could because the universities that i know of, including the one i go to, don't have them.
+ i thought that joining a sorority would be fun because my impression was you'd just be in a big house with a bunch of fun people and you'd occasionally party and compete with other sororities (this knowledge just came from the movies lol). definitely changed my mind about that now !!
I was in a sorority all four years of undergrad. The issues need to be aired, and it's not a healthy system. I found amazing humans I love, but everything else is... problematic... to say the least...
I sounds like a big reason why sororities are so expensive (apart from maintaining their classist and elitist views) is to instill the sunken cost fallacy. If you have to spend so much money for the rush and the first semester and the whole greek life as a whole, you probably wont be as likely to speak up because 'what if they kick you out.'
I briefly was in a sorority at a school in North Carolina. Honestly I was immature at the time and joined because I wanted to fit in. I transferred to a different school closer to my home state and wasn’t sure if I wanted to transfer to their chapter of my sorority. The first week of school at my new campus I was studying in the library, wearing a tshirt from my old school that had letters on it. Well apparently it was illegal to wear letters that week, but of course how would I know that as I wasn’t involved in Greek life on this campus yet. Girls from other sororities took pictures of me and sent it in to their executive board to get the chapter fined 😅 the president reached out to me, and was very kind, but asked me not to wear any more of my old sorority tshirts for the rest of the week. I just felt really odd knowing that girls were sneaking pictures of me while I was just trying to study in the library. It felt like such mean girl behavior, and I was just not about it. The shirt also clearly had a different college name on it? But they were still fined for my actions…. So odd. The rules are strict and often arbitrary.
Imagine a group of preppy college girls being deems ‘judges’ of that many other girls. We all know sometimes a girl doesn’t like a girl just cause & then neither do her friends. I can just see this becoming traumatizing for certain girls for no real reason than they didn’t feel accepted (which they prob thought was the point) & girls were mean to them & they had to live w/ them. Just on the basis of living w/ that many college girls AND having to bedazzle daily.. I’m OUT!
I am subscribed to Lauren Norris and have watched her videos for a long time. She started herself with not a lot of help from her family. Yes she was in a sorority at Bama but she is a sweet person. I do think the Bama rush system is bad as a whole but not everyone in it is terrible.
This video was really well done! I agree completely about the cult-ish, toxic vibes these sororities and the recruitment process are giving. My daughter has on occasion brought up that she wants to join a sorority to which I said "absolutely not". It's also the same reason I am against beauty pageants.
26:15 I can understand not being able to wear letters until after initiation. (Especially since there is a lot of prominence about the only people allowed to wear letters are members. And if you haven't been initiated yet, you're not a member yet.) But all of those other rules are honestly waaay too much. Like, what harm is there in not wearing makeup or having damp hair on a random day of the week on the main floor? My hair is curly and takes hours to dry. A blow dryer would've made my hair look worse. It seems like the bare minimum that that individual's chapter let her wear a sweater in the freezing cold. There's one thing to have a dress code for specific events (chapter events, initiation, in pin, etc), but it seems ridiculous to require a dress code for existing everyday in the house. It also feels like a lot of socials require a lot of money to be spent on clothing itself. I swear, the sororities at my Alma Mater had like, 20 specially made tshirts for random events throughout the year. I imagine they had so many things they had to buy to match the other sisters.
I absolutely hated being in a sorority. I don't know even where to begin. I joined my Junior year in college. I had a good friend that I worked with at the time that convinced me to join. She said it would be fun and you will have sisters. Boy was I wrong. You have know idea what you are getting yourself into until after you rush and you are in. How my school did it was new members didn't really have to do anything for the first semester. It was a trial period so to speak so can get a feel for the sorority. Once you get initiated then it all changes. You are expected to pay dues, go to every party, go to every volunteer event, only hang out with fraternity guys, buy every item like shirts and backpacks that they offered, and the list goes on. After my first year I was done. Luckily I transferred and never joined Greek life again at my new school. I am mentioning this because they don't tell you the bad parts of joining a sorority, just the good parts. At the end of the day you are paying for sisters. You are paying to belong to something. You only find out the real truth when you are actually in and initiated. Then you can't join another sorority once you are initiated in and that's how they trap you. I can go on and on about my experience but that's the gist of it.
I am a Phi Mu from UNC - Chapel Hill. Being in a sorority was so wonderful to me. I went to a very large university, and joining a sorority gave me a smaller pool of women to bond with and find my lifelong friends. I came from a very middle class family (maybe on a bit of the lower end of that). We crunched the numbers, and it was cheaper for me to live in the house with the house meal plan, than for me to be in the dorm with the campus meal plan. There were extra expenses - dues, event costs, t-shirts - but it really wasn't bad. We could afford it because I chose to go to an in-state university, so had lower tuition. I would not have been able to do it at a private or out-of-state college. Being part of the sorority is basically being in a social club - that is the main focus, with philanthropy and academics in the mix. I loved every minute - well, except for recruitment - that was exhausting - but the end result was worth it. And recruitment only lasts a short time. I have been out of college for 20+ years, and I organize an annual trip with my sisters every Spring - the sisterhood is real and we are still living it. No, we aren't "best friends" with every sister - but we are friendly with all and closer with some. I honestly cannot say enough good things. Of course, I did the college thing in the 90s, and it was not this intense.
I do understand the race issue. At UNC, there are historically black sororities on campus - and few black women go through recruitment for the traditional "white" sororities. I do know that the National Sorority is working to increase diversity and the "old money" factor - eliminated recommendation letters, eliminated priority for legacies - trying to make it easier for women to get in based on their personality rather than who they know.
I entered a Wisconsin university as a shy insecure 18 year old who SUCKED at making friends, so when my roommate asked if I wanted to rush with her, I said sure, and I decided to try to go in with an open mind. But one day into the process, I quit (thankfully before any dues beyond $50 were due.) For one, the people reminded me of the cliquey popular girls in high school who I never jived with. But the red flag that really turned me off was we were required to text our rush leader a photo of our outfit the night before so they could approve it or turn it down. I think it would've felt less gross if it was a "if you want you can send me your outfit for feedback" but the fact that it was required really forced me to reckon with how image-focused many of these sororities often are. So much for putting away the stereotypes and giving sororities the benefit of the doubt. 😆
I feel like there are chill sororities but they never last because they don't get enough Alumna donations like a cult sorority would. I say this as frat guy who only had bedroom fun with women outside of sororities because I didn't want to risk a Title IX expulsion for not being white enough (iykyk), which somehow almost happened anyways because I didn't pick up on a sorority girl's mixed signals and she found my frfr FB account...even the cops felt bad that I had to deal with that BS on finals week.
As someone who went to and currently attends a big ten school, sororities are paying for friendship privileges, and the philanthropy aspect is total bs, most people wouldn’t even know what charity they’re paying for, most fraternities did “philanthropy” for breast cancer orgs, which while you can’t hate on donating to a chairing in need, is just gross and totally unnecessary imo, sororities got fined for having alcohol in the house, couldn’t have boys over, etc. One friend I had who went to a D3 school was paying $5000 a semester for being in a sorority … totally ridiculous imo
The benefits? During medical school they choose only a certain amount of people to become derms, plastic surgeons. Who gets those positions? People with connections. Having connections are the difference between making 300k a year and a cool million. I know girls in marketing who started out making 300k right out of college because of their sorority connections. if you are part of a sorority that has a lot of clout it pays itself.
I am so glad I grew up with zero pressure to go to a certain college or joint a certain sorority. I think a lot of these girls feel so much pressure to achieve this thing that they'll do anything to get in or be absolutely crushed if they don't. And then once you get in you have to exist in this incredibly strict and homogenous group of people! It just makes me so sad for the girls who get taken in by this and then become a part of the problem...
These Greek life people will be 32 years old and still brag about their Big/Little pairing like it’s a formal adoption, complete with social media posts.
As someone who grew up on the ''other side of the tracks'' as in like someone who grew up in a poor neighborhood just like two miles from sororities, and this was just me. But those girls were mean as hell. They would often volunteer at my school, and I remember there was this one girl who you could just tell hated being there. I have special needs, so yeah I was in that class. The entire time she treated me, and other kids as babies. She even went as far as to hold my hand while I wrote down notes when I asked the teacher to slow down. Did I mention this during my senior year of high school? They also tried to recruit a bunch of poor rural girls who's families main income was farming.
Going to Alabama's rival school, LSU, sorority life wasn't so big, but also since we were in the South, it was there. I remember making friends with a brunette girl in my dorm the first day and she was alone because her roommates are rushing. She was talking about how she was not interested in it at all. She later on joined their sorority and I never really saw her again since she became a copycat of the two blonde girls. I have so many stories of girls just switching up after joining their sorority. Another girl I meet during a summer camp for freshmen to get used to campus. This one nice girl was losing her mind to get into this one sorority and she was networking and begging to camp leaders to know if they have connections to the sorority. As a first-gen, Black girl, I found it all fascinating. One sorority had a few Black girls (it wasn't a Divine 9 sorority) and I was considering it. But I couldn't afford it and focused on school. It was so weird to me how sororities were ranked. I'd read the GreekRank discussions because our Greek life also had tons of drama. It was so odd to me. I was like why is this so important? Why are you all going so hard with this lol? Why are there so many rules?? IDK most of those sorority girls after college were asking me for help looking for a job. I was confused because wasn't that the point of joining a sorority for networking? IDK.
I feel like by the time you get through all the rush fees and fees of being in the ACTUAL sorority any scholarship money won't do shit 😱Also where is the money for all those infractions even GOING??
My college had a blanket ban on 'closed' clubs/organizations/etc, and also had no issue with permitting students of legal drinking age to drink on campus as long as they abided by common sense rules of not being disruptive or destructive. We didn't have strict dress codes, social media codes, or anything like that. As a result? My school experience was awesome, I met all sorts of different people with wildly different interests from me, I never felt like I was being judged or excluded in situations where it mattered that I didn't have much money and needed to focus on work or grades. I felt like faculty respected me as an adult capable of making my own decisions for the first time in my life, and that was groundbreaking. It feels to me like this kind of system only really exists to help create a closed networking environment for very select, elitist circles. Otherwise, networking is something that encourages branching out and being more open to new experiences - stuff like heading down to volunteer with the pottery club because they're doing public service and you want to help out with that even though you don't know anything about pottery.
Interesting to hear your perspective! I’m so glad I went Greek in college but I totally see that it’s not for everyone. I never had an issue with the rules and they all made sense to me. I graduated a long time ago but I don’t think I ever had a pay a fee / got in trouble for anything. We had ZERO hazing and I learned so many valuable life skills/lessons through my sorority. A lot of things about Greek life are easily misunderstood from the outside. Disclaimer - I did not go to Alabama, but I did go to a big public university in the south. Thanks for sharing your perspective!
As a former VP of my sorority, Bama does this soooo wrong. Its literally so creepy and backwards. I showed up to my rush after signing up 24 hours before because it was 10 dollars and i would at least get pizza and a tshirt out of it. Bama rush sounds hella stressful
i’m in a sorority and i have had so much fun during my time, there is rules to follow, but it’s mostly along the lines of “if you wouldn’t want your boss/grandma to see it, don’t post it on your main” basic stuff. the rules are in place to ensure that girls are not being favored over others. a hug could give a pnm the thought that “omg i’m in”. also kind of goes for not trying that behavior for girls who may be uncomfortable with it :)
I graduated from a (small, yet large due to football) Christian university in Texas, and this is happens across the south at many universities, unfortunately 😐 I was warned that half of the friends I'd make during my freshman year would all disappear unless I was a part of their prestigious sororities. It was honestly so gross and I learned a lot during that time not just about this nasty, culty, elitist culture, but also about people in the real world. It doesn't start nor end with sororities/ frats, but it's something that I'm glad I never joined.
As someone who was in sorority I’m a mid-sized college, it was fine. I was too shy to really enjoy it and not nearly as preppy as the other girls. I would NEVER do it at a big school. Especially if you have to invest this much money for the mere chance of getting in. That does not seem worth it at all
So proud and grateful that you’re breaking the stigma of not talking about Greek Life. If this is what someone wants to do, have at it, but let’s at least make sure everyone knows what they’re walking into!!
As a Mexican American who grew up watching movies that talked about sororities and fraternities, I always thought they were weird. I noticed from the start that they were mainly made up of white women and I had no desire to EVER join one. As far as I'm concerned, the white girls can keep their sororities because I don't think they would benefit POC at all in the long run. Also, what kind of sisterhood has everyone looking the same and micromanaging everything?? 🙄🙄🙄
From the side of job recruitment after college (as a manager that mostly supervises students/recent graduates) when I look at a resume and everything a student has done revolves around Greek life…it’s not a good look. I want to see clubs and jobs and experiences that were actually relevant to the industry they’re entering. Most Greek life “leadership” always has the most ridiculous resume descriptions.
I was in a sorority and then they started bullying me. I quit by the end of freshman year. My college was a commuter college and it wasn't anywhere near you're video explanation. I was very aware of sorority life and rush on other campuses because I visited a few sleep away colleges. I did all sorts of activities and volunteering at college on my own.
At my school, girls easily spent more on being in a sorority (dues, fees for infractions, required outfits, etc) than on the in-state tuition. But we were regularly chastised by university staff for saying Greek life is classist. (You can’t disagree with Greek life at all. My campus has one of the lowest campus crime rates in the country, but the crime we did have was almost all Greek life affiliated)
Man. I went to a small very nerdy university in Washington state, and joined a sorority there. It was so chill and a lot of fun. We were definitely not cookie cutter shapes and colors. And, you're asking about benefits. I have to tell you. Being an alumna member is better than being a collegiate member. Even more chill and mature (because we grew up haha). I moved from Washington to Ohio in 2017 having never stepped foot in Ohio before, so I emailed the local alumnae chapter and was like "Hey. I don't even know what neighborhoods to avoid in the city. Can I get some advice?" And they were like "Hell yeah. Wanna go for happy hour too?" And that was that. I had friends in a new city where I didn't know anyone.
I rushed at a very diverse university, as a minority. I actually don’t regret rushing, I did learn quite a bit and fostered some relationships I still cherish to today. I would I say I am who I am because of it and I do consider it being an investment, however in the latter half of college after I got all I could, I dropped because the monetary investment no longer made sense as I was older, wanted to focus on my education etc. I would say not everything is for everyone- this is for a precise type of person I did enjoy it until I didn’t ☺️
During my freshman year. I had no things for my room off campus and no money. On move out day, I stayed by the soroity houses and they threw out a ton of cute, perfect furniture and household stuff and clothes with tags on. I took a huge sackful of stuff and enjoyed it all. I did this a few more times during move out days I got an arts scholarship to my school and moved ceoss country to go there. I didnt know at the time that 80% of the oncampus students were involved with greek life 😪😭 It used to be so hard to make friends because most events that people went to were completely out of my reach 🤷♂️😪
As an introvert, I never saw the appeal. I had a full time job and full time class load, way too much to do already. I'd also never really fit in during high school and knew they'd never pick me anyway, so I really couldn't have cared less about that sort of people when I arrived for freshman year. My dorm roommate was the opposite, super social, rich, homecoming queen, etc, and to my surprise, truly an honest, nice (if a bit naive) person that cared about others,. She came in every night with stories of rush being so much fun, and everyone being so nice, and omg she was sure I was missing out, who wouldn't want this, etc. In the later rounds of selection, two greek officers gave her a betta fish in a little bowl. The challenge was to take this fish absolutely everywhere and to never, ever leave it alone, or "there would be consequences". She thought that meant she wouldn't be selected. So she did it, toted this little fish around, dodging other girls whose job it was to get the fish away from her. Her chemistry professor didn't want the fish bowl or the sorority disrupting his lab with rush BS, so he said she could put the fish on his desk. The girls snatched the fish, took it back to our dorm room, and thumb tacked the poor creature to the door. I was the one who found it. My roommate was crushed and blamed herself. I was furious and blamed the two bitchy psychos who'd do that to a helpless animal, but she wouldn't hear any criticism of her "sisters". The professor tried to get them punished for unauthorized entry into his office, but $$$ talks and they got away with it. In the end, my roommate still joined their group despite their disgusting behavior and turned into a clone of her new friends, just another mean girl, all her genuine friendliness gone, and drunk 90% of the time.
When my husband left his and they tried that, he sent them the hazing photos and asked if they wanted to continue. They were smart and just erased all evidence on their end of him from ever being in it and that was that.
I'm sorry WHAT are those rules? I can't imagine taking it THAT seriously. (I mean, I can see some sort of punishment for degrading other organizations and such. That is not a good look on your sorority. But that is just crazy to expect $200 for that.) I did a service sorority. (Social sororities are the ones with houses.) No house. We had dues, but that was to cover fees + shirt for the year. We had like, a rush event one day. Next week was interviews with the chapter, bids sent out the next day. Most of the stuff we did was service stuff (community service, fundraising, and aiding other organizations). The other things we did were chapter hangouts and/or meetings with other chapters. I don't want to give an exact price. But we didn't have to pay to rush. And our dues weren't even CLOSE to that $375 application fee. If I had to experience that level of insanity and of hoop jumping, I know I wouldn't have tried. (I also transferred in as a junior, so I doubt most social sororities accept upperclassmen regardless.) I just don't understand why people would want to and like to endue that kind of shenanigans. I'm also someone that doesn't pick up on understood/implied social cues, so I don't think I would even have a good time at a social rush event, especially given how much of it seems to rely on those understood cues and acting in the way THEY want you to. At my rush, I just wore jeans and a tshirt and acted like myself. And they extended me an offer. I don't understand the absolute obsession with Bama rush, but also the perfected image you have to give. (I understand the obsession in a curiosity way, but I don't understand why social rushes in general are put on such a high pedestal.) Yes, I understand wanting someone that who will respect the letters and will be someone who will reflect the chapter well... But like, shouldn't you get to know the person and not the image that you wanna see? Because the person that you are seeing at rush isn't the same person that you''ll see in chapter meetings. Especially if you have to put on a facade for rush.
these service groups sound much more realistic, but viewing from outside US, why do they need to be about getting accepted by the current members at all? Why not have a service based club that anyone who wants to can join?
Hey angels! Finally here's my video on Bama Rush or also known as the University of Alabama Greek Life rush! Let's dive into my thoughts, what I've seen happen, how it works, and more
To be clear (and fair), not all sorority chapters have the same reputation. They are all expensive, to a point, but the social atmosphere is based on location. My sister was briefly a member of a sorority at a school on Long Island, NY. She left because she didn't have a lot in common with the other women, but the process of joining that "sisterhood" was very different from how it is at the University of Alabama.
As someone who grew up in 'Bama and is a member of the Divine 9; here's my take. The real reason for these sororities is to gatekeep a certain level of white Southern society. The aim is to uphold and perpetuate the artificial idea of Southern white womanhood. Most of these women will choose to live in the South where sorority membership will play a role in job prospects/business network/backing for political office, potential husbands (brother fraternities get 1st dibs), post university social clubs (ladies and country clubs), tips on how to buy into exclusive neighbourhoods and join the 'right' churches and contacts to the best private schools for their children. Many of these girls are from the wealthy 1%. They want to keep the money/influence in that sphere. Every once in a while, a not-as-wealthy girl will get in as a passion project (a la Mean Girls or Clueless). BTW - The money raised through fees and fines are for house upkeep (whether you live there or not), national and Pan-Hellenic dues and for the various parties thrown through out the year.
Exactly, nothing but rich white people stuff. I thought it was obvious, but i think ppl actually see it as a fun summer camp-type thing. Its not, its just exclusivity.
Yes I went to a school across the country where 80% of on campus students were involved with greek life. It was so difficult to find friends, all events were closed to me. The school hosted events were always super empty 😕 and you had to be invited to sorority events.
I got the degree and did well but it was such a low point for me 😢
Like they had money, no student debt AND a big giant girl group to help and protect them for life and I was a world away from them even though we all were in the same classes 💔💀✋
That does sound damn simular how Burschenschaften work in Germany. With a different reactionary history (and in case of schlagende Verbindungen with more blood and scars).
These organisations are historically male.
For anyone who reads german: 'Elite sein' is a book by Stephan Peters about socialisation into and within those 'fraternities'.
wow ty for the insights!
It is incredibly cult like
as someone who's from a country where such things as sorority and fraternity don't exist, this whole thing is really wild to me. like... I went to university to study, not whatever this is
in my country most universities don’t even have a campus, just random buildings in the city (sometimes scattered around). Very few clubs too, if you want to make friends you just talk to the people in your class or participate in social activities outside university. Good luck on making me spend any money on any of this. As you said, this is wild.
@@xladycaosx same!
UA and Ttown are a beast of their own creation. Living on the strip and slinging drinks for these sororities was an experience that will haunt me forever. Loved my alpha phi coworkers tho, they were a hoot. Bama rush was good money making week
Rich Americans like to pretend they care about their education so that's what this is
same. I was watching this like 'what in the American hell is this?' hahah
Ohhh! So this is where HOA presidents are born.
Yep! 😂😂
Lol good one
Nailed it!
And MLM Huns.
Crazy 😂😂😂
honestly, not just sororities but fraternities both give me EXTREME cult vibes... the history of it and why they got started is very interesting yet disturbing.
and i'll also never understand why people this age have not matured enough to the point to want to become their own person, and not look/act like every single other girl. as a child it's understandable, trying to fit in. but i feel like most find people themselves before all this bullshit. i question their IQs
I'm shook they still exist and people still buy into it. Very cult like. Creepy and abusive as well. Peer pressure at its best.
Look into black sororities and frats. They still do some of the most f**ked up shit. They need to be discussed, too.
@@glitterbomb7896 Because the houses that don't do this cult behavior are always shafted by the ones that do because they collude for self-preservation. Secret societies are real.
yea i mean frats were literally built of white supremacy
When I was a sophomore last year at UCF, a girl who worked at the food pantry where I volunteered tried to convince me to join Pi Phi. When I did a Google search on UCF Pi Phi the first thing that came up was an article about the sorority being suspended for forcing a PNM to drink copious amounts of alcohol causing her roommate to call the police since she feared for her roommate's life. The next time I was volunteering while the Pi Phi girl was there I asked her about their philanthropy and she said, "it's about kids and books and stuff." Needless to say, after that I told her I thought Greek life was NOT for me.
oh my god that is so scary
Ah yess....ucf...**sigh**
Kid you not that same sorority in my town was also no longer recognised by Panhellenic because their hazing was exposed. They would need to drink a litter of liquor and eat a plate of spaghetti. Creates an insanely dangerous choking hazard.
I went to UCF as well but was not in a Sorority there. I was in Chi Omega at FGCU and transferred. Chi Omega at UCF wanted me to transfer and live in the but I was done with Greek life. I absolutely hated and it and wanted out. I have heard so many horror stories of Greek Life at UCF. In 2012 when I went there, so much hazing was going on. One fraternity lost their charter because they were hazing a member and they ended up killing him.
I was friends with this girl when I was little like best best friends, and our moms were friends. We both ended up moving to other states, losing contact. She was in my area YEARS later when we were both adults and we decided to meet up. She had gone from a sweet dorky funny light hearted person to a total snot nose BITCH!!!!! And I tried kinda asking about her life to figure out why she was such a stuck up bitch now and she mentioned that she was in a sorority. I honestly think it changed her. Like we were best friends who hadn't seen each other since childhood and she was the one who contacted me but she still had her nose turned up the entire time. Idc who comes at me I blame the sorority.
26:25 forcing young girls to wear dresses and prohibiting them from carrying bottles or cans at parties in favour of OPEN cups is wild to me! You cannot tell me that those rules were not written by men.
Exactly! Easy way to spike the drink
Maybe it’s because drinking out of a bottle looks like sucking d. My grandma wouldn’t let us eat ice cream in public.
@@blacktiger2154 that’s really gross…
As someone who has spent a lot of time in curly hair communities, the “No wet hair” rule SCREAMS that its intended to keep out a certain ethnic minority who has hair that typically takes a long time to dry (women of color, specifically black women).
That it also might catch a few people of Irish descent when these households are from French and English stock were considerations at a time too.
But yeah has an overt Jim Crow intent.
Tbh I don't think these girls have met and spoken to enough ethnic minority people to even consider how their hair might dry. They wouldn't need to set up such rules if they can just not recruit ethnic minorities in the first place (which they proudly don't)
@@UlshaRS Intent? They're mask off with their discrimination.
@@UlshaRS I'm of Northern Irish descent with dark curly hair. This checks out.
Race has nothing to do with it. They want their girls looking perfection in public. They feel it reflects on the sorority of you go out in pajama bottoms and a messy bun. I agree it’s ridiculous, but it’s not ethnically motivated.
Luckily Alabama’s campus is so big and there are so many students, that I was able to stay away from this mess and have a great college experience. So glad you’re covering this!!
I was curious what it's like for girls/people who aren't rushing at schools like this, it's great to hear that you can stay away from this and not feel like you've missed out
@@natatatm while i will say this creator has some information incorrect, as far as experience for non sorority members (i was in a sorority at bama, OOS, on scholarship and i got invited back to max sororities every round, most of this bad stuff is just Old Row Sororities which i preffed two of but am really glad i did not go with) but some of my best friends were not in a sorority, and like you can still go to frat parties, and while Old row doesn’t allow it bc their homophobic, every other sorority lets you bring girls as your date for date parties so i brought my friends to date parties and like you can go to every bar and off campus parties and stuff so honestly you don’t miss out on a lot. I will say you can kiss any aspiration of student government or anything bc we choose every single person. so that sucks. but there are hundreds of clubs to hold leadership positions in and stuff so yeah don’t feel like you HAVE to be in greek life at alabama.
@@natatatmalso i will say they absolute ARE still involved in alabama politics. i went to a party at the current Mayors house for a TNE party and we absolutely helped with canvassing all the way up to Alabama congress. The men (think most Jason’s members) still interact with SB at Yale and others etc. And they pay to wipe all of this info.
@@hannahb.375 what about if a girl on Old Row is single lol? Could she just decide to not do a date party or something?
@@hannahb.375You bought friends to date party , there just friends how is that anti gay
What baffles me about the fees the sororities charge is that someone (or a group of someone’s) is constantly watching these girls to catch any minor infractions. That would creep me out, knowing I was constantly being monitored.
As someone who was in a sorority, there are definitely some ridiculous fees, but most of the ones Isabella read off from recruitment (even if they seem ridiculous) are actually supposed to be to prevent hazing. So you can't initiate a hug with a PNM, because if they don't want to hug you back, they will feel pressured to anyway to make a good impression. You can't let them leave with anything other than water, because it could be bribery to vote for that house higher, etc. The ridiculous rules with recruitment are supposed to make it as fair and safe and comfortable for the women going through recruitment.
And it's also so you do not mislead and hurt any feelings unnecessarily. So the fines for following on social media or saying "see you tomorrow" are because it gives that person the illusion that you are indicating that they will be getting called back to that house the next day when you might not. It's a very complex process on both ends, and even if you, as an active member, absolutely love the girl you spoke to and give her a glowing review, there may have been 100 other girls that night who also got glowing reviews and was adored by the person who spoke to them, so the active member has no idea if their sorority's recruitment team will select the girl they talked to as someone to get an invite the next day.
The fees once you're in are pretty ridiculous as well, but at least in my chapter while I was in, we had a lot of discussions about not monetarily penalizing people for being poor (like fees for missing events because someone had to work). We had 3 excused days per semester to miss mandatory events for work, and 3 mental health excused days, amd if you had a job/internship/class where you would always miss an event if it was on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays after 4pm or something like that, you could get a special excused status where you wouldn't be penalized those days. And we also chose as a chapter to remove any late fees for dues/fines because again, that's just making you pay more for being poor. Many chapters and campuses still have that though which sucks.
The people doing monitoring are other members. And if you piss someone off they will absolutely weaponize standards against you.
Jeez, I haven’t heard “infraction” in years. That takes me back. I was fined $50 for missing a sorority event because I didn’t notify the member in charge of fines that I was performing in a musical production the same night. I was also fined for $100 but I can’t remember why, I just remember it was stupid.
Keeping up appearances is part of the social expectation. You are never allowed to show weakness where anyone else might see/hear and tell others.
It's a culture of toxic gossip mills.
Sorority life is like being a cult. There’s the secret Greek names, secret hand shake and secret meetings. During rush, we were forced to wear a white blouse and black pants with a blue ribbon. If that ribbon was not wore, you would get in trouble and discipline. Also, you would need to memorize all the FULL names and Greek names of all the girls from that sorority. Also, there was a night that they blind folded us and took us up a mountain. When we got there, they gave us candles. They did a ritual and gave us our new Greek names. Only the sorority could know our names. Mines was Thetis. I was chosen to be like the sorority “mom” to help the rush girls (I was still rushing). One time my brother was in the hospital and they told me that sorority family is more important than my family. At that point, it was a wake up call. I left the sorority. After that, they would look at me differently but I was happy to be free. Honestly, those rituals are no joke. Is like asking a demon to enter your life. The ritual finalizes, “you are no longer (name) now you are (Greek name).”
That’s what initiations into the occult, covens and secret societies looks like, only worse. It is a cult
Do they call you by your new Greek name after this ritual? Like, were you referred to as Thetis going forward?
@@CLMG714 how can they call themselves Christian?
this is actually terrifying and horrible what the heck
omg this is so weird mine wasn’t like this at ALL 😭
I was at the University of Alabama from 2013-2017 when there were several cases of racism in the sororities at UA that went mega viral. I was NOT in a sorority, and when I found out how much people were paying in dues each semester, I just felt bad for them. I feel like they were brainwashed into believing they needed to rush and they spent so much time, energy, and money just to be micromanaged. I enjoyed my time at Alabama and boy am I glad I never rushed!
Oddly enough, it's not about racism as people think. I went to Alabama. It's ALL about WHO your family is. Most of the girls in the sorority got in because their family members were in. I never rushed cause I knew I had NO chance since I didn't come from a wealthy, old money family. Because that's what it is.
@@bluesageful well yeah, legacy is one thing but there were several instances between 2013-2016 of blatant racism in the sorority admissions. I met someone in 2013 who was wanted by every active member in a sorority and the alumni were the ones who shut down her admission because she was Black. She had the grades, extracurriculars, social life, AND her family was very integrated in the University of Alabama administration. That’s not a case of not having enough prestige. She was literally denied because she was Black and the alumni thought it would give the wrong “look” to have her in the sorority. I went to Alabama. Racism isn’t as big a deal as people want to believe, but it definitely was a prominent issue when I was a student there.
Def sounds brainwashed
@@bluesageful Two things can be true at the same time ...
ALWAYS the race card.
I'm French, and man, I really am trying to understand all this and how it could even be legal, but it is very hard. It is amazing that despite globalisation there are still some weird cultural specificities that come with certain countries.
America is not globalized. The world is Americanized.
We must reject globalization and embrace our culture
i went to school in a northern college town, one of my best friends was in a sorority. she said they were required to wear white to their weekly meetings, were not allowed to make instagram posts without approval, and underclassmen were required to share large rooms and bunk beds w 18 other girls (even if they paid to live in the house). they also had select fraternities that they were required to make appearances at every weekend. she eventually got kicked out for being uncooperative lmao
We were only allowed to wear certain colors as well. We had to get permission on what we could post on social media. I joined a sorority in 2012 so TikTok wasn't a thing and social media was not as prevalent as it is now. To get into our weekly meetings we had a secret handshake. We were not allowed to talk to anyone outside the sorority about these meetings and what was said. The list goes on.
That legitimately sounds like my personal nightmare! No thank you! I don’t think I’ll ever understand how anyone could find that appealing. You are a full grown adult, and you are WILLINGLY paying tons of money to be told what to do, how to act, how to dress, how to look, and who you are allowed to associate with. I just don’t understand. You can form lifelong friendships with people for free and do incredible work with charities on your own without the insane rules, control, fees, favoritism, hazing and bizarre rituals. It’s just mind boggling to me.
Oh my gosh, they think they are some kpop group or sum lol
@@rebeccaconfare787 And the stupid thing is that formal meetings don't contain anything much that non-Greek folks would be interested in, just some esoteric language and secret handshakes. Well, maybe the public would be curious to see the robes and decor. Initiation rituals is a different story though. When I was initiated, when they took our blindfolds off, my fellow initiates said they had a hard time not laughing because the costuming was so absurd.
@@BhappyDThat was me in college! If I wanted more stupid rules, I would have stayed with my parents. I don't get it at all.
Thank you for touching on the racism aspect of these predominately white sororities. That is why historically Black fraternities and sororities provide safe spaces to support Black college students who seek the community.
Edit:
To clarify, I use 'safe' to refer to the alternative space and support system offered by Black social groups on campus.
I am not denying the existence of hazing that occurs while rushing regardless of race.
The same thing happens in black and Latino sororities. People just don’t shine the light on them. And this is coming from a personal experience. They are all the same. Doesn’t matter what race.
Don’t be fooled. Many D9 sororities and fraternities do the same things. When people speak badly about their experiences or of hazing, they are shunned. It’s a similar process just with a different group of people.
Are you serious?? The black sororities and fraternities behave the same way.
I'm not denying the existence of classism, colorism or hazing that may exist across all fraternities and sororities.
I'm clarifying that Black sororities and fraternities offer Black men and women an opportunity to rush without the overt racism present in predominantly White spaces.
@@carlastone3937 I don’t think you have experienced or seen what I’ve seen. Black sororities have discriminated against Asians, Latinos and whites. They are all the same.
Loved the video. Being a Black Woman in her early 20's, it makes me feel like I'm not good enough. I know in some cases sororities can be beneficial. It's just upsetting how the deep south will always be just that...The deep South. I'm from Tennessee, but I live in Colorado, and I personally feel like I've gained more knowledge and understanding of other cultures due to where I live.
I think the most upsetting part is that...Being a black woman, I'm already looked at as ghetto due to my skin and where I'm from, but if I talk proper or act too "classy", I'm "Bougee" or ". I wish somehow, we could change the narrative. I wish I didn't have to feel like I have to lower myself to fit in to certain groups. Unfortunately, I will always be looked at as the Angry Black Woman (ABW) just because of my skin. It's truly unfortunate but choose to embrace rather than dwell.
Isabella, you are freaking amazing, and I think it takes guts to come on here and talk about the "Hush Hush" when it comes to being a part of a sorority. Especially one in the deep South. I saw only two Black women in this video which is very upsetting. But I also didn't see any Hispanic or Asian ethnic women either. Go you and please keep educating people on situations that aren't talked about.
Warmly,
A Fan
Right? As a Bw, these sororities' demographics/looks/values are such a blatant perpetuation of w. supremacy. It's very depressing to see how little, the deep South has progressed. The fact, that they use so much hiphop/rap culture in their chants/dances is just adding insult to injury imo.
Edit: desegregation in 2013?! What a joke.
Thissss! Like as black people, if we “act black” then that’s equals to being ghetto and hood, even though not all black people are from the hood and the ghetto and some of them, live pretty wealthy lives. However, if we act “classy and proper” then we’re acting “boujee, and white” like as if white people are the only rich people out there.
As a fellow black woman, I understand you sentiments. I ask this question out of genuine curiosity and as a member of the D9, but did you not feel like you would fit into any of the 4 D9 sororities or were they not available at your school?
Eh, us Hispanic women don't care to make ourselves a victim like you black people do. I should say "black American/westerners " because black people from Africa are* just on a whole other level.
I think it's just not for us, paying to be an exception, I'm starting a type of Podcast channel to talk about American and world culture. As a non American I've noticed how southern people have a very controlled way of being that's learned. I'm sure it has a lot to do with history and my channel will be talking everything from grits to hot combs. Just reply here if you're interested in co-hosting,
As a non-american, I still cannot grasp this concept. The uni life in america is so strange
ikr? sound like horrible culty church boarding school or boot camp for girls lol why are they want to join it? you even have to pay a lot.. 😮
As an American I don’t understand either
I go to my stat's flagship school, I've been able to avoid ''Greek life'' (tbf the only reason it's called Greek Life is because they use Greek letters.) but there are so many organizations that you can join are not like sororties. I'm in a history society, honors society, and several other small clubs. The only real 'fee I had to pay was $100 max for the history society. I personally never stood this culture myself either
This is the extreme tho most schools aren’t like this tbf
Hello Isabella, Thank you for talking about Bama Rush. It dominated my TikTok timeline last year. 🤦🏽♀️
When I was younger I resisted joining a sorority because of the horror stories I heard that pledges went through while rushing. In 2022 I became a member of a service sorority (not apart of the Divine 9) whose primary goal is to serve and give back to the community, also its primary focus on education of women. There were no crazy antics or crazy requirements in which to join the sorority. I am glad that I waited until adulthood to find an organization that spoke to what I am passionate about, which helping those who are less fortunate than I.
Gamma Sigma Sigma?
A friend who got into her sorority of choice got put in a psychiatric hospital for 72 hours due to a claim from another sister. No one really verified whether or not she did what was claimed. So I view sororities with a jaundiced eye because of her experience.
That's horrifying
Omg what did they do to her
The fine list looks like an American hospital bill:
ENTERING HOSPITAL: $50,00
BREATHING IN LOBBY: $50
SPEAKING TO NURSE: $350
LIFESAVING CPR: $20,000
Hi! I used to be a University staff member who advised fraternities and sororities for five years (historically white and Historically Black/Latino/Asian/multicultural), and advised on the Panhellenic recruitment process at the university level and as a volunteer of my sorority. This is SO complex, and the criticisms are completely valid (I NEVER liked the recruitment process, it's insane). If you ever wanted to chat more about this with someone who used to work in this area, and get a brutally honest about it, let me know! I'm happy to provide any and all information I can. Really great video! - Olivia
Make this video!!!
@@brittanybrittany4084 YES YES YES
Please!
@@justinejustice_league1857 yes please!
Make a video pls
I never wanted to join a sorority until I ended up pretty far and by myself for college. I ended up choosing a non panhellenic sorority that was SUPER cheap and we used a lot of our dues for a retreat weekend in the semester, and the rest went to just small events we had (like food) but other than that I loved it and I had great friends out of it. Not EVERYTHING was perfect. But again, i wasn't in a panhellenic sorority 😂 idk if I would have said the same if I was in one
I was in a nontraditional / non-panhellenic sorority. My dues were like $180 a semester I think, and I probably spent another $50 each semester on events/t-shirts/whatever (plus a little more the semester I had a little, but that was also because I was a little over the top about it). I also went to a small liberal arts college in the upper South, so the culture was very much that everybody had other things they did, even my friends in panhel sororities with $600 dues.
I had a friend join a sorority her 2nd year, and it felt like she disappeared from my life entirely. So many demands that she was losing sleep, her friends outside the sorority, and keeping up with her classes due to required events she would have to attend. Some weren't even specified as mandatory but was very much implied that if you didn't join you were probably looked down upon and talked about behind backs.
I’m in Ohio and was in a sorority. I will say, most of my bridesmaids were my sorority sisters. But, it could be stressful at times. Northern sororities are a lot more chill than southern ones. Definitely not this intense.
As someone who’s lived in both states, AL takes the cake in terms of which state should be meme’d on 😭
sec schools are a different BREED, my sorority gets hated on bc of our focus on academics and pride celebrations. Alabama scares me so much istg i would never rush there.
I was a Pi Phi at the University of Michigan and it was definitely NOT like this. Many girls didn't drink or party. Academics was extremely important. Very little drama. I loved it!
Yes I’m in a southern sorority and it was crazy at times. 😅
I was alpha Xi delta at eastern Michigan, definitely nothing like this haha.
tbh tbh there is a venn diagram of sorority girls and mlm girl bosses and the middle overlap is def quite large
omg literally ive thought this
Ha! That crossed my mind too - that so many of them will become MLM boss babes lol
I'd say it's more like a Venn diagram of sorority girls and RUclips influencers. They're a dime a dozen on YT now, aside from one particular influencer who got kicked out of her sorority because she made some major racist language faux pas.
When sororities' idea of diversity inclusion is the occasional brunette.. you know there is a problem, lol.
People should be around whomever they are comfortable. As a black woman I can assure you that I'm not trying to be apart of a predominantly white sorority and I don't care if they don't want me there. I enjoy being around women who are like minded including culturally. Differences are good but it shouldn't be something that is forced.
@@yemisi5191 that clearly isn’t the point. Their lack of diversity is a great problem especially considering their egregious racism.
I’m intensely introverted, neurodivergent, have medical issues and other mental health issues. I didn’t have a roommate. I didn’t play any sports or have any special skills like art or mathematics going into college.
I STILL MADE FRIENDS
And we are still friends 8 years later. You don’t need to pay for friendships.
This sounds interesting to me as a European. American society is a really competitive society and it is cultivated from an early age 🤔
It’s so incredibly toxic 😣
Not all American unis have sororities/frats! One reason I chose the school I did is bc it was >5k students in all, no football team, no Greek life. But yes, a lot of American life is about competitive individualism
But it's competition in petty, shallow things.
The US and Canada are so large that it's more so self imposed competition in the weird niche that you like. Even then it's not really competitive. It mostly depends on your personality, ambition and wanting to challenge yourself.
no this is just weird to us as it is to y'all.
My sorority experience was so different from Bama Rush or other prominent ideas about being in a sorority BUT I totally agree that the system is set up to fail a lot of people, from the dues, the strict (and often arbitrary) rules, to the fact that most universities wash their hands clean of Greek Life by letting the chapters govern themselves. What could go wrong with 100+ 18-22 year olds running an org, handling money, and enforcing rules in secrecy while also attending classes full-time?
literally sooo glad you had a good experience! I hate when people have bad experiences. I agree its kind of become a mess in some places and its really sketchy
Also, to provide more tangible benefits of Greek Life in general, at my University, about 30-40% of the campus was in a Greek chapter and university leadership was generally supportive of Greek Life because, what they had seen statistically was that students in Greek Life had higher rates of retention and graduation, higher levels of campus involvement, specifically in non-Greek organizations and activities, and higher average GPAs. But I think this also depends on the quality and oversight of the Greek Community. Our Greek Life Office and community emphasized school, community involvement, and leadership and thereby were active in helping students apply their experiences outside of their chapter.
Agreed! I think its really campus dependent, lookin at southern sororities are so different then where I went in the Northeast (also definitely no parents money in my college life lol) - but as an adult I've distanced myself from the International Headquarters part of the organization, especially because some of the problematic things highlighted in the video I do think are correct. As a person who moved to the other side of the country by myself with no support I did value the local group here I was able to fall in with and immediately find my people where I live now.
Back then my dues were $84 a
Month!
After I graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi, I became an enforcement agent with a state agency. I remember on one operation, we were driving back from an overnight stakeout around 4AM, and on the highway, we passed a girl, blindfolded and tied to a sign! We went by fast and thought it was a "dummy" someone had tied to the post, but we weren't sure, so we crossed over to the other side of the highway to turn around and go back. It was a young woman, tied up and in shorts on a very cool morning. As we were untying her, a car with a bunch of sorority girls pulled up, laughing. They said this was part of rush!
Good god. That could have ended so badly in so many ways.
Did y’all hold these girls accountable?? Why is this allowed and no consequences??
@@FransceneJK98 Because...rich...white
I went to the University of Southern Mississippi in the early 80's. I remember someone recruiting for a sorority and she claimed that being in a sorority would guarantee a high grade point average, because, "all our girls have a high GPA." Well, that was because they kicked out anyone who didn't keep a high GPA! Duh.
Yeah, just like the S&P 500. The stock price always goes up because they (S&P) drop their worst companies all the time. If their price ever goes down then they start doing "corrections".
I say this because it never truly ends until mankind does.
34:06 That IS a huge red flag. Ik my sorority was like, "You are not majoring in the sorority. Do not make the sorority your entire life."
sooooo glad you didn't experience that!! seriously hate that thought process that's pushed
@@IsabellaLanter I should probably also mention I wasn't in a housed/social sorority. I was in a service organization (we had no house). I do think living in a housed greek life organization probably WOULD make the members feel like they have to eat, sleep, and breath their organization every day.
I was in an unhoused service sorority. I can't speak to a social one, since I wasn't in one. But I think having an unhoused sorority was probably the BEST thing for an organization to be. Being in a house seems like there would just be a lot more unsaid expectations expected from you.
I was in for 3 years. The reason I pledged was because they said that there was a network that made it so all the girls left with a good job that you have to know someone to get. After 3 years of having everything about my life controlled, I left with no job or help. I did all of that for no reason.
Saammmeee I joined a D9 Black Greek organization but it turned out the exact same! I decided to just denounce and request my membership be ended and throw away all my crap so I don’t have to be reminded how much time I wasted🤣
That happened to my boyfriend, he was a pre-med student and told his frat brothers he needed a break to focus on bettering his grades to get into medical school, and they all stopped talking to him completely 🙄
I pledged in my sister's sorority at a time in my life when I was suicidal. The sorority was a Cult. It fit the BITE Model perfectly. -I left after one semester and got help for my mental well being.
I credit that experience for how I avoided MLMs and other Cult like experiences. I felt the same red flags and ran the other direction.
Nothing about this video surprised me.
You cant understand how wildly USA this all sound for a non-USA citizen
Im from the US (Texas). Trust me, even here everyone knows sorority girls are slutty party girls. They don’t have the best reputation
I go to Alabama and when I found out sorority girls could only drink at the frat houses I became so terrified for them
It's basically a pageant. I used to work as a makeup artist for pageant girls. This is just like Miss America, but you have zero down time and you can never turn off.
Greek life is for nepo babies to have something to put on their resumes so that later on, in the corporate world, they can step on people who didn't have daddy's money and advance because of their sorority and not their own merit.
This is the most stereotypical take I've ever read. Bama (and the SEC in general) is a different animal when it comes to sororities.
I went to a school in the northeast, joined a sorority with about 15 members in the chapter, and I gained such important skills and leadership opportunities. My dues were about $150/semester - which I paid for myself with the money I made at my job - and we didn't have a sorority house.
I'm still involved with my organization 20 years later, and I've volunteered in numerous capacities and have met so many wonderful women of all ages.
Hi! Black woman that joined a "white" sorority in michigan here! For sure I alway made the joke that I was the chosen black sista. They all knew i was joke.
I joined a sorority my junior because many of my friends were graduating at once and really needed some friends(and maybe some underline abandonment issues). I lucky joined one that alot of the members were like me. Quirky, not as girly, random, and diverse. Yes, some of the other sorority had your typical ascetic but they seem more accepting then the ones on this video.
In the sorority my rush group had a girl in a mechanical wheel chair and a Muslim woman that wore a hijab.
I know sorority is crazy serious down in the south but up north at my school its like 'hey, pay your due (that are no where near $1000), follow our rules that any reasonable person is doing already, and don't be a dick.
I really wanted to join a sorority in college. My university had 19 sororities and i did the first stage of rush where we visited all houses and ranked preferences. For that stage of rush we were provided shirts that everyone wore "to even the playing field so expensive outfits didn't influence" or whatever, but clearly the rich girls made sure to have their expensive bags, jewelry, jeans, etc.
Only 5 or 6 of the houses had air conditioning, so that heavily influenced my decision 😅 i ended up dropping out before the next stage because i had to work at least 30 hours a week and would have missed so many events/ been fined. That, plus i was having to take out loans for school, there's no way i could also afford dues and activity fees, etc. Lastly, my anxiety and rejection sensitivity couldn't handle learning which houses didn't want me.
In my adult experience, the benefits of Greek life are shallow network connections to the ultra wealthy. It means continued expensive involvement in Greek events in order to have a shallow way to connect to others
I grew up in D.C. So prior to going off to uni, I went to the Library of Congress (in person with my official library card) and requested the pledge manuals (and even initiation rituals, ect) of every Greek organization that was on my campus. Then I photocopied the interesting bits. The LOC has everything, you just can’t take it out of the building. The super old scrolls are in there, those you can’t photocopy, but I found it extremely entertaining and enlightening. I avoided the one that made people wear only white underpants and “special socks” from their big sis and sleep in a coffin covered in astroturf. It wasn’t the coffin. I’m not claustrophobic, I just legit can’t sleep wearing socks. I also avoided the one that made pledges carry around a large dead fish for a week during hell week…..my campus had massive hazing. Insane hazing. Sleep deprivation, you could only go to the bathroom when told, they forced you to listen to the same song on repeat for 7 days. Non stop. Day and night. Tons of manual labor….it was brutal.
As an European, I can't comprehend why would anyone go through all that, in my opinion nothing you can get out of a cult like sorority is worth it
@@SigridStorjernI wasn’t in a sorority but wish I was. A lot of jobs and job connections can be made after you graduate. Most job applications ask for your fraternity or sorority chapters. But also you can get internships and connections made before graduation.
"Most job applications" What the hell kind of jobs are you applying for?? That has not been on a single application I have ever seen. I'm now a hiring manager for software, and if I saw someone list a frat on a resume I would probly ignore it. (Though if they had a leadership role or a lot of associated service, I'd look at it like any other unpaid similar experience.)
@@jensing89 yes, that was a massive part of it where I attended (which was not Alabama). Getting a job from Greek life connections made it sooo much easier!
@@jensing89 For what I understood, you can network too joining clubs and such, and it's less expensive and probably a whole lot less detrimental for your mental health if things go sideways. Also, i too never heard of this being asked in a job interview/resumee
I always felt it seemed like paying for friendships with insane requirements. I don't doubt that many people made lasting friendships, but I always thought dues, fines, and forcing girls to interact with fraternities was predatory.
"paying for friendships"
This is still wishful thinking tbh, they always form cliques who are forced to meet every day.
after being socially rejected my whole childhood, i was so proud of myself for getting into one of the top 3 sororities at my university, (i’m good at interviews lol.) i was so excited for sisterhood and philanthropy … truth be told i’m not really the type lol but i think i wanted to be … at minimum i just wanted friends in college
my poor parents paid a bunch of money just for these girls to also socially reject me 🥲
i quit after i was one of few who didn’t receive a little sophomore fall 🙄 college didn’t go well for me, that was my last year.
The striking similarities between this and the culture/practices of most MLMs (ridiculous financial commitment, time commitment, culty behavior, shady leaders/founders) tell you everything you need to know!
One of the benefits of being in Greek life that isn’t often talked about is that if you want to get into politics, it’s damn near impossible without Greek life. I think it’s something like 75% of politicians in the US were in some sort of Greek organization. Also, legacy (former) members often provide connections, for example, getting into top law schools, med schools, landing interviews for competitive jobs, raising money for political campaigns, etc. So, even though the whole thing is wild, it actually can be a huge investment, depending on what you wanna do with your life, which is absolutely insane to me but it be like that.
Edit: to be clear this is NOT an endorsement, just an explanation of why the institutions are still so influential despite the widespread (very valid) criticism.
This makes it seem that the system exists so that people in power can make sure that the next generation of people in power is as much of a carbon copy of the previous one as possible.
Yeah I agree this is the biggest benefit of joining.
i thought that was the most popular benefit? the networking, i wanted to join a Panhellenic sorority because i just assumed most of the girlies were rich and had parents in politics or ones who ran businesses that could help w securing a job lol
What a gross system :(
That’s a “benefit” that’s really actually a huge problem lol
There’s also *a ton* of videos on RUclips titled “denouncing my sorority” or “denouncing my fraternity”. There’s a lot of weird witchcraft that’s happening during the hazing process and these initiation rituals that most of us (the general public) had no idea about 🥴. Soooo creepy, I’m really proud of these people for speaking out about this.
Some of the rituals are easily visible online if you know where to look. Having been in a sorority (not Divine 9), I can tell you there's a lot of weird shit going on in those rituals, and as much as they publicly state they're totally Christian, the vows in the ritual are anything BUT Christian. I've heard that in the last few years, more sororities are re-writing ritual to make it sound less like pagan god/goddess worship, but that's not the case for all of them.
My roommate (at a small university) joined a sorority her sophomore year and became a totally different person. Convinced me to rush the next fall. I was only eligible for half the sororities because many didn’t accept engaged people and then I got kicked out of rush because I couldn’t get off work the third night. Dodged a bullet lol.
Coming from a country in Europe where all the "respectable" universities are public and free (but with intense entry exams), and going to a private school is seen by majority basically as not being smart enough/being lazy and getting your parents to buy you a diploma, the USA system of higher education is really wild to me. Here there is no greek life, no campuses, no student debt, a completely different approach.
I must admit though, I couldn't believe what I was hearing the first time I ran into the concept of greek life, it seemed so old-fashioned and culty. I'm glad to see in the comments that a lot of people had a positive experience but to me, it has lord of the flies vibes.
Mixing cliquey behaviour, money, power over people, segregation and young insecure students seems like an obvious breeding ground for all kinds of problems and trauma.
Same here, I get that it‘s just a very small privileged part of US society that does the greek life thing, but still. I‘m about to graduate with no student debt because university is free here as well, and it‘s a blessing. Personally this Rushing Week would be a great backdrop for a A24 style horror movie a la Midsommar, it really suits that whole vibe and aesthetic.
Same in my country (maybe we are from the same one). I'm glad that I was able to study in the best universities of the country, because I was only able to do it because they are public and more affordable.
Yep, I really didn't get it watching American highschool movies, wondering what is spring break what is this kappa kappa goo, but I did think the girls all looked hyper feminine and chirpy
Sororities are like "we're diverse, we have a brunette"
I went to a small private college and somehow all the sorority girls were actually really nice and cool and ALL looked very different. All shapes, ethnicities, sizes, etc etc. It was pretty refreshing. They all were also required to do various community service events each month. I wasn't in one (I CAN'T live with other ppl and I refuse to be policed) but it changed how I saw all sororities. Some DON'T suck!
Just cuz they smiled and were nice doesn’t mean they meant it. It could’ve been fake as hell. You don’t know what they really thought of you behind your backs.
The recommendations are meant to make sure only people who are willing to jump hoops and know how to jump hoops are applying (of course it does help to know that you are pre-selecting someone that is already connected to your group). It means you are starting off with a group if people who are willing to ignore their own comfort and thought for a goal. You then tighten the screw further by setting absurd tasks (the more absurd - abd embarrasing- the better) to weed out the next level of people ready to ask why. The deeper you go into the process the more you end up with people who do not question (quite often do not know how to)... then sunk cost fallacy hits... welcome to the MLM, wait, welcome to the cult, sorry, sisterhood.
This is exactly what I was trying to put into words, but struggling to do so. 👍
You hit the nail on the head!
Isabella, you are so pretty and smart and it warms my heart to see you speak out against the sketchy and horrible parts of sororities. I feel like you will be able to reach young women before they get sucked into it. Thank you for what you do ❤
That consultant seminar meeting thing reminded me SO much of those MLM zooms!😮 I also notice a similarity between mlm and sorority recruitment in the way a shiny perfect image is portrayed. All the girls smiling at all times and have to look a certain way.. etc.
a childhood friend of mine was on the “board” (idk if that’s the right term) for her sorority as a sophomore. she was the youngest on the board. one night, the PRESIDENT of the sorority came in absolutely WASTED and shouting, and straight up PUNCHED ANOTHER “SISTER” IN THE FACE. Days later, they had a vote on whether or not she (the president) was going to be able to keep her title as president or not. The vote came down to my friend (who is a very prim & proper rule follower; def the type to become a US senator one day) and she voted against the president. The president that busted up into the house slurring and shouting and socked a “sister” in the face. The ENTIRE SORORITY turned on my friend and basically shunned her for making a reasonable decision based on the sorority’s own code of conduct. That’s how a lot of sorority’s work.
They voted on assault being negativly sanctioned instead of calling police? What?
@@sisuguillam5109 yup. assault AND drunk driving. and the only one punished was my friend-who would rather die than break a RULE, never mind the LAW.
@@alexisreads I am profoundly sorry.
I was in a sorority and we had $750,000 just to decorate our house. I got in trouble soooo many times for my social media & other girls didn’t.
sorority / fraternity culture in the usa has always been so fascinating to me! i never knew you had to pay for anything--just thought it was a club you could join that included a dorm.
these groups have a pretty bad reputation in the ph because of their infamous 'hazing' processes. it's unfortunately not unusual for someone to die so it makes the news everytime it happens. this rlly propogated a fear for these groups + we are heavily discouraged to join in case we are recruited. i don't even know where to find one even if i could because the universities that i know of, including the one i go to, don't have them.
+ i thought that joining a sorority would be fun because my impression was you'd just be in a big house with a bunch of fun people and you'd occasionally party and compete with other sororities (this knowledge just came from the movies lol). definitely changed my mind about that now !!
I was in a sorority all four years of undergrad. The issues need to be aired, and it's not a healthy system. I found amazing humans I love, but everything else is... problematic... to say the least...
I sounds like a big reason why sororities are so expensive (apart from maintaining their classist and elitist views) is to instill the sunken cost fallacy. If you have to spend so much money for the rush and the first semester and the whole greek life as a whole, you probably wont be as likely to speak up because 'what if they kick you out.'
I briefly was in a sorority at a school in North Carolina. Honestly I was immature at the time and joined because I wanted to fit in. I transferred to a different school closer to my home state and wasn’t sure if I wanted to transfer to their chapter of my sorority. The first week of school at my new campus I was studying in the library, wearing a tshirt from my old school that had letters on it. Well apparently it was illegal to wear letters that week, but of course how would I know that as I wasn’t involved in Greek life on this campus yet. Girls from other sororities took pictures of me and sent it in to their executive board to get the chapter fined 😅 the president reached out to me, and was very kind, but asked me not to wear any more of my old sorority tshirts for the rest of the week.
I just felt really odd knowing that girls were sneaking pictures of me while I was just trying to study in the library. It felt like such mean girl behavior, and I was just not about it. The shirt also clearly had a different college name on it? But they were still fined for my actions…. So odd. The rules are strict and often arbitrary.
Imagine a group of preppy college girls being deems ‘judges’ of that many other girls. We all know sometimes a girl doesn’t like a girl just cause & then neither do her friends. I can just see this becoming traumatizing for certain girls for no real reason than they didn’t feel accepted (which they prob thought was the point) & girls were mean to them & they had to live w/ them. Just on the basis of living w/ that many college girls AND having to bedazzle daily.. I’m OUT!
I am subscribed to Lauren Norris and have watched her videos for a long time. She started herself with not a lot of help from her family. Yes she was in a sorority at Bama but she is a sweet person. I do think the Bama rush system is bad as a whole but not everyone in it is terrible.
I adore Lauren Norris! I agree how she’s a great example how not everyone in a Bama sorority is a bad person
@@carolinemary7876 For sure! I think she’s the rare few you see in greek life that are actually down to earth.
I love Lauren too!
Fmr UA sorority girl here, it’s all true. Everything, it’s true. And honestly it’s even worse.
Good job Isabella ❤
This video was really well done! I agree completely about the cult-ish, toxic vibes these sororities and the recruitment process are giving. My daughter has on occasion brought up that she wants to join a sorority to which I said "absolutely not". It's also the same reason I am against beauty pageants.
26:15 I can understand not being able to wear letters until after initiation. (Especially since there is a lot of prominence about the only people allowed to wear letters are members. And if you haven't been initiated yet, you're not a member yet.) But all of those other rules are honestly waaay too much. Like, what harm is there in not wearing makeup or having damp hair on a random day of the week on the main floor? My hair is curly and takes hours to dry. A blow dryer would've made my hair look worse. It seems like the bare minimum that that individual's chapter let her wear a sweater in the freezing cold. There's one thing to have a dress code for specific events (chapter events, initiation, in pin, etc), but it seems ridiculous to require a dress code for existing everyday in the house. It also feels like a lot of socials require a lot of money to be spent on clothing itself. I swear, the sororities at my Alma Mater had like, 20 specially made tshirts for random events throughout the year. I imagine they had so many things they had to buy to match the other sisters.
It's meant to establish and in-group opposed to the out-group. The rules are meant to make little sense and to be a pain.
I absolutely hated being in a sorority. I don't know even where to begin. I joined my Junior year in college. I had a good friend that I worked with at the time that convinced me to join. She said it would be fun and you will have sisters. Boy was I wrong. You have know idea what you are getting yourself into until after you rush and you are in. How my school did it was new members didn't really have to do anything for the first semester. It was a trial period so to speak so can get a feel for the sorority. Once you get initiated then it all changes. You are expected to pay dues, go to every party, go to every volunteer event, only hang out with fraternity guys, buy every item like shirts and backpacks that they offered, and the list goes on. After my first year I was done. Luckily I transferred and never joined Greek life again at my new school. I am mentioning this because they don't tell you the bad parts of joining a sorority, just the good parts. At the end of the day you are paying for sisters. You are paying to belong to something. You only find out the real truth when you are actually in and initiated. Then you can't join another sorority once you are initiated in and that's how they trap you. I can go on and on about my experience but that's the gist of it.
Paying to be policed and having fake friendships. So toxic. Glad you left
I am a Phi Mu from UNC - Chapel Hill. Being in a sorority was so wonderful to me. I went to a very large university, and joining a sorority gave me a smaller pool of women to bond with and find my lifelong friends. I came from a very middle class family (maybe on a bit of the lower end of that). We crunched the numbers, and it was cheaper for me to live in the house with the house meal plan, than for me to be in the dorm with the campus meal plan. There were extra expenses - dues, event costs, t-shirts - but it really wasn't bad. We could afford it because I chose to go to an in-state university, so had lower tuition. I would not have been able to do it at a private or out-of-state college. Being part of the sorority is basically being in a social club - that is the main focus, with philanthropy and academics in the mix. I loved every minute - well, except for recruitment - that was exhausting - but the end result was worth it. And recruitment only lasts a short time. I have been out of college for 20+ years, and I organize an annual trip with my sisters every Spring - the sisterhood is real and we are still living it. No, we aren't "best friends" with every sister - but we are friendly with all and closer with some. I honestly cannot say enough good things. Of course, I did the college thing in the 90s, and it was not this intense.
I do understand the race issue. At UNC, there are historically black sororities on campus - and few black women go through recruitment for the traditional "white" sororities. I do know that the National Sorority is working to increase diversity and the "old money" factor - eliminated recommendation letters, eliminated priority for legacies - trying to make it easier for women to get in based on their personality rather than who they know.
I entered a Wisconsin university as a shy insecure 18 year old who SUCKED at making friends, so when my roommate asked if I wanted to rush with her, I said sure, and I decided to try to go in with an open mind. But one day into the process, I quit (thankfully before any dues beyond $50 were due.) For one, the people reminded me of the cliquey popular girls in high school who I never jived with. But the red flag that really turned me off was we were required to text our rush leader a photo of our outfit the night before so they could approve it or turn it down. I think it would've felt less gross if it was a "if you want you can send me your outfit for feedback" but the fact that it was required really forced me to reckon with how image-focused many of these sororities often are. So much for putting away the stereotypes and giving sororities the benefit of the doubt. 😆
I feel like there are chill sororities but they never last because they don't get enough Alumna donations like a cult sorority would.
I say this as frat guy who only had bedroom fun with women outside of sororities because I didn't want to risk a Title IX expulsion for not being white enough (iykyk), which somehow almost happened anyways because I didn't pick up on a sorority girl's mixed signals and she found my frfr FB account...even the cops felt bad that I had to deal with that BS on finals week.
As someone who went to and currently attends a big ten school, sororities are paying for friendship privileges, and the philanthropy aspect is total bs, most people wouldn’t even know what charity they’re paying for, most fraternities did “philanthropy” for breast cancer orgs, which while you can’t hate on donating to a chairing in need, is just gross and totally unnecessary imo, sororities got fined for having alcohol in the house, couldn’t have boys over, etc. One friend I had who went to a D3 school was paying $5000 a semester for being in a sorority … totally ridiculous imo
The benefits? During medical school they choose only a certain amount of people to become derms, plastic surgeons. Who gets those positions? People with connections. Having connections are the difference between making 300k a year and a cool million. I know girls in marketing who started out making 300k right out of college because of their sorority connections. if you are part of a sorority that has a lot of clout it pays itself.
I am so glad I grew up with zero pressure to go to a certain college or joint a certain sorority. I think a lot of these girls feel so much pressure to achieve this thing that they'll do anything to get in or be absolutely crushed if they don't. And then once you get in you have to exist in this incredibly strict and homogenous group of people! It just makes me so sad for the girls who get taken in by this and then become a part of the problem...
These Greek life people will be 32 years old and still brag about their Big/Little pairing like it’s a formal adoption, complete with social media posts.
As someone who grew up on the ''other side of the tracks'' as in like someone who grew up in a poor neighborhood just like two miles from sororities, and this was just me. But those girls were mean as hell. They would often volunteer at my school, and I remember there was this one girl who you could just tell hated being there. I have special needs, so yeah I was in that class. The entire time she treated me, and other kids as babies. She even went as far as to hold my hand while I wrote down notes when I asked the teacher to slow down. Did I mention this during my senior year of high school? They also tried to recruit a bunch of poor rural girls who's families main income was farming.
Going to Alabama's rival school, LSU, sorority life wasn't so big, but also since we were in the South, it was there. I remember making friends with a brunette girl in my dorm the first day and she was alone because her roommates are rushing. She was talking about how she was not interested in it at all. She later on joined their sorority and I never really saw her again since she became a copycat of the two blonde girls. I have so many stories of girls just switching up after joining their sorority. Another girl I meet during a summer camp for freshmen to get used to campus. This one nice girl was losing her mind to get into this one sorority and she was networking and begging to camp leaders to know if they have connections to the sorority.
As a first-gen, Black girl, I found it all fascinating. One sorority had a few Black girls (it wasn't a Divine 9 sorority) and I was considering it. But I couldn't afford it and focused on school. It was so weird to me how sororities were ranked. I'd read the GreekRank discussions because our Greek life also had tons of drama. It was so odd to me. I was like why is this so important? Why are you all going so hard with this lol? Why are there so many rules??
IDK most of those sorority girls after college were asking me for help looking for a job. I was confused because wasn't that the point of joining a sorority for networking? IDK.
The sorority system (in the south, at least) is just insane and disturbing.
I feel like by the time you get through all the rush fees and fees of being in the ACTUAL sorority any scholarship money won't do shit 😱Also where is the money for all those infractions even GOING??
Read the comment a few comments up ^^^^ sorority had $750,000 just to decorate their sorority house.
My college had a blanket ban on 'closed' clubs/organizations/etc, and also had no issue with permitting students of legal drinking age to drink on campus as long as they abided by common sense rules of not being disruptive or destructive. We didn't have strict dress codes, social media codes, or anything like that. As a result? My school experience was awesome, I met all sorts of different people with wildly different interests from me, I never felt like I was being judged or excluded in situations where it mattered that I didn't have much money and needed to focus on work or grades. I felt like faculty respected me as an adult capable of making my own decisions for the first time in my life, and that was groundbreaking.
It feels to me like this kind of system only really exists to help create a closed networking environment for very select, elitist circles. Otherwise, networking is something that encourages branching out and being more open to new experiences - stuff like heading down to volunteer with the pottery club because they're doing public service and you want to help out with that even though you don't know anything about pottery.
Interesting to hear your perspective! I’m so glad I went Greek in college but I totally see that it’s not for everyone. I never had an issue with the rules and they all made sense to me. I graduated a long time ago but I don’t think I ever had a pay a fee / got in trouble for anything. We had ZERO hazing and I learned so many valuable life skills/lessons through my sorority. A lot of things about Greek life are easily misunderstood from the outside. Disclaimer - I did not go to Alabama, but I did go to a big public university in the south. Thanks for sharing your perspective!
As a former VP of my sorority, Bama does this soooo wrong. Its literally so creepy and backwards. I showed up to my rush after signing up 24 hours before because it was 10 dollars and i would at least get pizza and a tshirt out of it. Bama rush sounds hella stressful
2 0 1 3 Desegregation!?!?!?!?!
Right? I'm with Isabella on this one: the young women, who aspire to join these sororities, are young women for whom racism isnt a deal breaker.
@Alejandro-gk9jw Thank you, mansplainer.
As a person that rushed freshman year and left spring semester of freshman year, Isabella is preaching to the choir 🙌
i’m in a sorority and i have had so much fun during my time, there is rules to follow, but it’s mostly along the lines of “if you wouldn’t want your boss/grandma to see it, don’t post it on your main” basic stuff.
the rules are in place to ensure that girls are not being favored over others. a hug could give a pnm the thought that “omg i’m in”. also kind of goes for not trying that behavior for girls who may be uncomfortable with it :)
I graduated from a (small, yet large due to football) Christian university in Texas, and this is happens across the south at many universities, unfortunately 😐 I was warned that half of the friends I'd make during my freshman year would all disappear unless I was a part of their prestigious sororities. It was honestly so gross and I learned a lot during that time not just about this nasty, culty, elitist culture, but also about people in the real world. It doesn't start nor end with sororities/ frats, but it's something that I'm glad I never joined.
The blond hair with the super dark fake tans are what get me, honestly. It’s so clearly artificial.
As someone who was in sorority I’m a mid-sized college, it was fine. I was too shy to really enjoy it and not nearly as preppy as the other girls. I would NEVER do it at a big school. Especially if you have to invest this much money for the mere chance of getting in. That does not seem worth it at all
So proud and grateful that you’re breaking the stigma of not talking about Greek Life. If this is what someone wants to do, have at it, but let’s at least make sure everyone knows what they’re walking into!!
As a Mexican American who grew up watching movies that talked about sororities and fraternities, I always thought they were weird. I noticed from the start that they were mainly made up of white women and I had no desire to EVER join one. As far as I'm concerned, the white girls can keep their sororities because I don't think they would benefit POC at all in the long run. Also, what kind of sisterhood has everyone looking the same and micromanaging everything?? 🙄🙄🙄
From the side of job recruitment after college (as a manager that mostly supervises students/recent graduates) when I look at a resume and everything a student has done revolves around Greek life…it’s not a good look. I want to see clubs and jobs and experiences that were actually relevant to the industry they’re entering. Most Greek life “leadership” always has the most ridiculous resume descriptions.
I was in a sorority and then they started bullying me. I quit by the end of freshman year.
My college was a commuter college and it wasn't anywhere near you're video explanation.
I was very aware of sorority life and rush on other campuses because I visited a few sleep away colleges.
I did all sorts of activities and volunteering at college on my own.
this sounds like the MLM of friendship…. insane 😊
At my school, girls easily spent more on being in a sorority (dues, fees for infractions, required outfits, etc) than on the in-state tuition. But we were regularly chastised by university staff for saying Greek life is classist. (You can’t disagree with Greek life at all. My campus has one of the lowest campus crime rates in the country, but the crime we did have was almost all Greek life affiliated)
Man. I went to a small very nerdy university in Washington state, and joined a sorority there. It was so chill and a lot of fun. We were definitely not cookie cutter shapes and colors. And, you're asking about benefits. I have to tell you. Being an alumna member is better than being a collegiate member. Even more chill and mature (because we grew up haha). I moved from Washington to Ohio in 2017 having never stepped foot in Ohio before, so I emailed the local alumnae chapter and was like "Hey. I don't even know what neighborhoods to avoid in the city. Can I get some advice?" And they were like "Hell yeah. Wanna go for happy hour too?" And that was that. I had friends in a new city where I didn't know anyone.
$8,300 to RUSH at bama ☠️☠️☠️ my parents would beat me if I asked them for more than $100 dollars on bullshit like dresses makeup hair clothes etc.
I'm at university in a different country and $8500 are my tuition fees for the whole year
I rushed at a very diverse university, as a minority. I actually don’t regret rushing, I did learn quite a bit and fostered some relationships I still cherish to today. I would I say I am who I am because of it and I do consider it being an investment, however in the latter half of college after I got all I could, I dropped because the monetary investment no longer made sense as I was older, wanted to focus on my education etc.
I would say not everything is for everyone- this is for a precise type of person
I did enjoy it until I didn’t ☺️
During my freshman year. I had no things for my room off campus and no money.
On move out day, I stayed by the soroity houses and they threw out a ton of cute, perfect furniture and household stuff and clothes with tags on. I took a huge sackful of stuff and enjoyed it all. I did this a few more times during move out days
I got an arts scholarship to my school and moved ceoss country to go there. I didnt know at the time that 80% of the oncampus students were involved with greek life 😪😭
It used to be so hard to make friends because most events that people went to were completely out of my reach 🤷♂️😪
These types of sororities are literally what nightmares are made of 😬
As an introvert, I never saw the appeal. I had a full time job and full time class load, way too much to do already. I'd also never really fit in during high school and knew they'd never pick me anyway, so I really couldn't have cared less about that sort of people when I arrived for freshman year. My dorm roommate was the opposite, super social, rich, homecoming queen, etc, and to my surprise, truly an honest, nice (if a bit naive) person that cared about others,. She came in every night with stories of rush being so much fun, and everyone being so nice, and omg she was sure I was missing out, who wouldn't want this, etc. In the later rounds of selection, two greek officers gave her a betta fish in a little bowl. The challenge was to take this fish absolutely everywhere and to never, ever leave it alone, or "there would be consequences". She thought that meant she wouldn't be selected. So she did it, toted this little fish around, dodging other girls whose job it was to get the fish away from her. Her chemistry professor didn't want the fish bowl or the sorority disrupting his lab with rush BS, so he said she could put the fish on his desk. The girls snatched the fish, took it back to our dorm room, and thumb tacked the poor creature to the door. I was the one who found it. My roommate was crushed and blamed herself. I was furious and blamed the two bitchy psychos who'd do that to a helpless animal, but she wouldn't hear any criticism of her "sisters". The professor tried to get them punished for unauthorized entry into his office, but $$$ talks and they got away with it. In the end, my roommate still joined their group despite their disgusting behavior and turned into a clone of her new friends, just another mean girl, all her genuine friendliness gone, and drunk 90% of the time.
Girl this video was good and informative. I never knew this was happening. 😮
The purpose is the social circles that reinforce a system to keep the poors out. Its about an autocratic meritocracy with a daloop of racism.
What’s worse is that if you don’t pay, they report you to collections and it shows up on your credit.
When my husband left his and they tried that, he sent them the hazing photos and asked if they wanted to continue. They were smart and just erased all evidence on their end of him from ever being in it and that was that.
I'm sorry WHAT are those rules? I can't imagine taking it THAT seriously. (I mean, I can see some sort of punishment for degrading other organizations and such. That is not a good look on your sorority. But that is just crazy to expect $200 for that.)
I did a service sorority. (Social sororities are the ones with houses.) No house. We had dues, but that was to cover fees + shirt for the year. We had like, a rush event one day. Next week was interviews with the chapter, bids sent out the next day. Most of the stuff we did was service stuff (community service, fundraising, and aiding other organizations).
The other things we did were chapter hangouts and/or meetings with other chapters. I don't want to give an exact price. But we didn't have to pay to rush. And our dues weren't even CLOSE to that $375 application fee.
If I had to experience that level of insanity and of hoop jumping, I know I wouldn't have tried. (I also transferred in as a junior, so I doubt most social sororities accept upperclassmen regardless.) I just don't understand why people would want to and like to endue that kind of shenanigans. I'm also someone that doesn't pick up on understood/implied social cues, so I don't think I would even have a good time at a social rush event, especially given how much of it seems to rely on those understood cues and acting in the way THEY want you to.
At my rush, I just wore jeans and a tshirt and acted like myself. And they extended me an offer. I don't understand the absolute obsession with Bama rush, but also the perfected image you have to give. (I understand the obsession in a curiosity way, but I don't understand why social rushes in general are put on such a high pedestal.) Yes, I understand wanting someone that who will respect the letters and will be someone who will reflect the chapter well... But like, shouldn't you get to know the person and not the image that you wanna see? Because the person that you are seeing at rush isn't the same person that you''ll see in chapter meetings. Especially if you have to put on a facade for rush.
these service groups sound much more realistic, but viewing from outside US, why do they need to be about getting accepted by the current members at all? Why not have a service based club that anyone who wants to can join?