They walked out in masks, their letters “AɸA” presented proudly on a stick in the center of Trible Plaza. Then, there was chanting.
The probate hosted by Alpha Phi Alpha’s Upsilon Beta chapter centered around their objectives of preparing men for usefulness by enabling them to demonstrate the highest and noblest form of manhood. A few days before the probate, Alpha Phi Alpha was recognized at our on-campus Fraternal Values Awards as Fraternity of the Year for their growing presence on campus as a passionate and productive member of our social environment. The Upsilon Beta chapter also won the Scholarship Support Award, which speaks to their character as a fraternity and their dedication to scholarship and to producing productive members. On campus, the chapter is small but recognizable through their diligence in pursuing excellence and their actions to demonstrate this.
When the probate began, the new members proudly displayed their shaved heads as they stood in the center of the circle and recited countless memorized lines about their brotherhood and proved that they have what it takes to become a full member. The periods of chanting in unison between the two initiates was broken up by parodies of popular songs that the new initiates had come up with regarding their brotherhood and the fraternity they pledged, followed by initiated members hyping them up and encouraging them as they performed the rituals. The brothers, overall, seemed to be pleased with their decision and confident in their abilities.
The crowd surrounding the men pledging Alpha Phi Alpha was a diverse mix of individuals from people who may have shown up simply because it was an event in the plaza and they were walking by, to the family members of the brothers. One thing the audience had in common, though, was respect. The entire crowd was in awe of the ability of the brothers when they were chanting and were laughing along to the parodies of songs from artists like Cardi B that broke up the pieces of chanting, providing a supportive and intrigued environment when the new initiates sang made up songs about why their fraternity is the best.
At the end of the ceremony, the older members of Alpha Phi Alpha presented the mothers of the new initiates with flowers, demonstrating the value of the initiates upbringing and how instrumental it was to getting the new members to this point in their life. The awe-inspiring rituals performed by new brothers in the plaza were a demonstration of the fraternity’s values for honor and tradition and demonstrated the allegiance the new brothers feel to the fraternity already. The new life that the newly initiated members will no doubt bring to the fraternity is one of the countless ways that the new members will impact the fraternity over their journey in the Upsilon Beta chapter at Alpha Phi Alpha.