Most people tend to have some sort of prejudice about one thing or another. Maybe you tend to think that if somebody has depression that must mean they are perpetually mopey and a drag to be around. Maybe you assume that just because someone is Black they must only listen to rap and hip-hop music.
There are all sorts of stereotypes out in the world dividing us as a society, and even as a community at CNU. Because of these stereotypes, many people fear letting others see who they really are. Realizing this, Pi Lambda Phi’s CNU Chapter held its first new member philanthropy event in the David Student Union breezeway on Thursday, March 19th, titled “What You Don’t Know About Me” in order to combat this problematic way of thinking. The group asked participants to write down something that most people would not guess about them on a white board, and to donate to their philantropy, Elimination of Prejudice. I sat down with fraternity members Ruben Conner and Will Craun to get some inside perspective on this inspiring effort.
Why did you choose to join Pi Lambda Phi?
Ruben: “I like what they stand for. Their philanthropy (Elimination of Prejudice) stood out to me. All the guys are awesome. You could feel the brotherly love and they didn’t even know me. Pi Lamda Phi is a social fraternity founded in 1895 at Yale as the first nonsectarian fraternity. They wanted to set up a community where anyone could get in. The founders were Jewish, so they wanted to eliminate prejudice. Everything revolves around that creed and that philanthropy. That’s us.”
How did you want to reach people for this cause?
Ruben: “I know that they wanted to reach out to the general public so we got involved with social media. We asked brothers to bring out friends. We really wanted everyone to come out.
“It’s funny because earlier in our event… (there was) ‘something you don’t know about me is that I love the Backyardigans,’ but then it got serious after about an hour. It’s special to see that deep down we’re all the same because we all have our issues. I think when we post the event people will realize that we’re all the same. I hope it helps.”
What was the point of candy and the jamming music?
Ruben: “I just realized we had to offer something for people if they participated. And who doesn’t love candy?”
Will: “With the jukebox idea, it was just a fun way to get people over.”
What motivated you all to put this event together?
Ruben: “There are a lot of stereotypes and prejudice against Greek Life. I mean, you can see why that is with everything that’s happening in Oklahoma. Pi Lam is trying to show that we’re not that. The events that we do, everything that we do is to show that it’s not that bad. I want to bring everyone together.”
Will: “This event was basically designed to raise money towards our philanthropy to have people connect with who they are on the inside. Our philanthropy is something that we really believe in. No shenanigans. The majority of us just do community service to help the community out. We’re with the world and the way it’s changing so that we can make the world better for all of us.”
How did you choose the name of the event?
Will: “The name of the event is sort of so people aren’t afraid to be themselves.”
From the lighthearted guilty pleasures to real life confessions, this event was a great way to get people on campus thinking about this issue. As young people with decades ahead of us, we have the most power to combat social issues like prejudice in our world and make long-lasting progress. We need to start talking about it and acknowledging that it is a problem. Through campaigns like Elimination of Prejudice, we as a society can begin to learn how to embrace our differences and unique characteristics and truly support one another.