HCM met with the three founders of Greek Allies, an organization that hopes to bridge the gap between the LGBTQ and Greek Communities. Here’s what they had to say:
Name: Julianne Sinak
Chapter: Kappa Delta
Major: Apparel Product Development/ Business
Tell us a little about yourself: I love vintage and thrift store shopping. When I was 18 I saw U2 at Busch Stadium and it was the best night of my life. I am kind of obsessed with children and cannot wait to be a hip mom. Cats freak me out. Once I met Andrea Gibson and I cried.
Why did you want to bring back Mizzou Greek Allies?: I wanted to bring back Greek Allies because I saw a lot of ignorance in the Greek community about the LGBTQ community. I knew that by educating Greeks we could create more understanding and hopefully allies. I had a really positive experience coming out to my chapter and I wanted others to be able to have that as well.
How do you feel the Greek community and LGBTQ community interact now?: I think that we definitely still have a lot of work to do to improve the relationship between these two communities, but I think that people see that there is a conversation happening. People are starting to realize that there are a lot of people that identify as Greek and LGBTQ.
What impact have you seen already?: The biggest impact that I’ve noticed is more visibility from allies. It’s so great to see people sporting Greek Allies pins, Greek pride shirts and LGBTQ stickers around campus. I don’t think that people really understand how huge a seemingly small gesture like that can be for those in the LGBTQ community.
What do you want to accomplish with Mizzou Greek Allies?: One of my biggest goals is to create a visible relationship between these two communities. I would love to see people on both sides really getting to know one another and to get past stereotypes. Another goal is to see more Greeks out in their chapters. It would be really great to get to a point where people don’t have to worry about if their chapter will respond negatively. Eventually we’d love to get to a point where Greek Allies is note even necessary.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten?: Be nice to everyone.
Name: Kayley Weinberg
Chapter: Sigma Sigma Sigma
Major: English, Psychology
Tell us a little about yourself: I love people. I’m almost always around people trying to make them laugh. I love being goofy and weird, because I think everyone is at heart. Second to my love for people is my love for cats. I have a tattoo of a cat on my ankle: Cattoo. I’m a hugger. It takes all of two seconds to become my bestie. I’m a word nerd. The world around me fascinates me. Birds terrify me. So does cottage cheese. I want everyone to feel included in everything. Nothing breaks my heart quite like seeing someone feel left out. I don’t understand exclusivity. I also don’t understand competitiveness. Except when it comes to Bananagrams. Like I said, I’m a word nerd. Most importantly, my understanding of love comes from my understanding of Jesus’s love. I hope I can love others even half as much as He loves us.
Why did you want to bring back Mizzou Greek Allies? I feel like there are a lot of people in the Greek community who identify with the LGBTQ community but are afraid to “come out.” I don’t think there are a lot of people in Greek Life who have had to be an ally to anyone before, which is why they are uneducated on LGBTQ language and issues. I wanted to bring back Greek Allies to educate the Greek community and hopefully create allies within the Greek community, making it a more comfortable place for people to “come out.”
How do you feel the Greek community and LGBTQ community interact now?: I think it’s definitely gotten better. I feel less of a barrier between the two, because there are more visible people who identify with being a part of both communities (whether queer or ally). However, I think Greek Life is always working against the tide when interacting with members outside of the community. It’s very hard for members of the Greek community to combat all of the negative stereotypes that are attached to them. The same can be said for members of the LGBTQ community.
What impact have you seen already?: For me, the impact has really just been the increase in conversation about LGBTQ topics within the Greek community. The support and encouragement we have received has been incredible and it’s come from many different chapters (PHA, IFC and NPHC). More specifically, when I was a Pi Chi so many of the Pi Chis wore pride pins on their bags, LGBTQ stickers on their water bottles, and spoke very highly of the inclusiveness of the Greek community. That made me proud to be a Greek woman. In addition, there have been a few members of the Greek community begin the “coming out process” this semester, which I cannot attest to Greek Allies entirely, but I would like to think it helped make them feel more comfortable and supported.
What do you want to accomplish with Mizzou Greek Allies?: We always say that our goal is to get to a place where our organization isn’t needed anymore. We want to get to a place where people are who they are and nobody thinks twice about it. Until then, we just want to educate people and empower people to be who they are within the Greek community.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten?: My dad always says, “I’m proud of you.” That’s shown me the power of support and love. I try to believe in others the way my dad believes in me, because he makes me feel like I can accomplish anything. Everyone deserves that feeling.
Name: Lilly Kraus
Chapter: Kappa Delta
Major: Health Sciences Pre Physical Therapy
Tell us a little about yourself: I am the oldest of three kids from Kansas City, Missouri. Let’s talk about those chiefs, eh? I love dogs and spend a lot of time volunteering and fostering them. I could eat ice cream for every meal, every day and not get sick of it.
Why did you want to bring back Mizzou Greek Allies? I wanted to bring back Greek Allies for a lot of reasons. I am so proud to be Greek and I was upset to see the relationship between Greek Life and the LGBTQ community suffering. I have always been an Ally and wanted to continue working to better this campus.
How do you feel the Greek community and LGBTQ community interact now? We have been around for less than a year and I already think that great improvements have been made. Education is the best tool that we have and through that we have reached so many people.
What impact have you seen already? I have seen a lot of impact on my friends at Mizzou. People want to learn and be more accepting. Similarly, we are breaking down stereotypes that people may have about the Greek community as well. It is very cool because I am constantly learning through Greek Allies.
What do you want to accomplish with Mizzou Greek Allies? I hope to bridge relationships at Mizzou. Greek Life is a large part of this campus and to educate this group will bring positive change for our whole school.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten? I can’t think of one specific thing, but just about anything my mom has told me. She is the greatest person in this world. She keeps me sane.