Greek life has been critiqued and stereotyped by pop culture in an overwhelmingly negative and predictable way. Greek women and men are often portrayed as over-partiers, shallow, superficial, elitist, and dumb. While there are some people in Greek life that do fit those stereotypes, not all of us do! People generally forget that when they’re talking about people in Greek life, they’re talking about normal college students who do things that normal college students do. These misconceptions, while understandable due to media portrayal and the setting most people interact with Greeks in, are generally untrue and hurtful.
1. “All Greeks do and care about is partying.”
This is an unfair stereotype. Of course Greeks love partying! They’re college students thrust into a pseudo-independence and generally have houses where they can party safely and with all their friends around them. But this isn’t exclusive to Greeks, especially at UMass where the student body is so unruly on the weekends that the University had to hire people to stand on sidewalks and guide students away from town residents. But in no way is partying all Greeks care about or do, and the same is true for unaffiliated students. Greek students are actively involved in many philanthropies and most have mandatory community service hours to complete. Every sorority on campus has a national philanthropy and host events multiple times a semester in order to raise money for them. Greek students also conduct campus clean-ups where they pick up trash around the town after particularly rowdy weekends. They also generally have to maintain a minimum GPA to remain members as well as having access to resources within the house. I say this not to make Greeks seem better than any unaffiliated students, but to emphasize that partying is not the only thing Greeks care about and that they are actively involved in bettering themselves academically and the community philanthropically.
2. “Greeks are shallow, superficial elitists.”
I believe this stereotype arises from the way in which people outside the system view recruitment. Obtaining new members isn’t about picking out all the “cool” guys or all the pretty girls; it’s about finding people who exemplify the values and beliefs of each individual house and would do well within it. When we recruit, we don’t look for girls who will look good wearing our letters, we look for girls who will wear them and know that they are part of a legacy of women just like us; women who founded it many years ago as a way of giving us an avenue to academic, social and future success.
3. “Greeks pay for their friends.”
This one in particular strikes a nerve. While every house does pay dues, that in no way means we are paying for our friends. It’s hard to explain to someone who has not experienced it first hand, but the friendship, support and genuine camaraderie that exists within the system does not arise from the check we give our secretaries every semester. If we paid for our friends, those friendships would not last as long as they do. The girls in my house have become my sisters because they have all supported me when I needed it, helped me up when I was down, and kept me grounded – not because they felt obligated to, not because I paid my dues, but because we genuinely care for each other. Our ideals and traditions form a common thread between us. We are all connected in a way that few understand and because of this, our relationships raise eyebrows and cause concern. If the couple hundred dollars I’m paying a semester is enough to cover all of the things I have learned about myself, others, and true sisterhood then I’m definitely getting some kind of crazy Black Friday level discount because it is not enough.
We hope you all keep this in mind when thinking of Greek life, collegiettes™!