Integrating Rush

Dear Dec,

Battling with the holiday rush at Tyson's Corner Mall in Northern Virginia, I nearly knocked over an old high-school friend of mine as I was hustling through a crowded Nordstrom searching for gifts. She seemed really excited to see me again. Even though we attend the same university, I felt like I had not seen her in ages. After expressing our shared grief about the horrors of last minute Christmas shopping, she asked me what I had been involved with at school. I told her that I rushed this past fall and pledged a sorority. She casually replied, "I don't know anything about the white sororities." I was stunned for a moment because I did not know how to respond. Nothing like that had ever made me feel different from her before. It was as if going to the University of Virginia had created some absurd social dichotomy between blacks and whites that was perfectly acceptable to everyone, at least on the greek scene. This spring, greek officials are working hard to reform rush. The main concern seems to be moving the time of rush, but a more racially integrated rush process should be at the forefront of the changes.

During my first-year orientation, President Casteen gave a speech to welcome all of the incoming students on the lawn in front of the Rotunda. He boasted, "This university is now 25 percent minority," implying that the university had made great progress in diversification. But racial integration progress here is not clear to me, nor do I think statistics mean anything when I see divided cafeterias and a segregated greek rush process. The diversity does not reach far beyond the classroom, and this social arrangement sadly seems to leave most people content. This segregation is artificial to me, but apparently not to many people at the university. As a girl coming from a socially diverse high school, I find it outrageous and uncomfortable. The antiquated social policy of "separate but happy" at the university needs to come to an end, or no one can claim it be a truly integrated institution.

To put an end to every segregated table at the dining hall, discriminated interracial couple, and every other facet of university life that seems to separate races, the most visible social network of the school (the greek system) must undergo reform. Many people who do not belong to fraternities or sororities are still significantly affected by them because they attend fraternity parties or date functions sponsored by greek organizations. Consequently, the influential scope of the greek system here reaches far beyond its internal members, and its organization has an important effect on how students view socialization here.

The issue of racially integrating rush is not just about blacks and whites. My best friend from high school at the university is an Asian-American who rushed this past fall. She honestly admitted to me her discomfort as a minority rushee. Not only did she feel different, but she immediately felt at a disadvantage because of her race. Since sorority rush can seem so superficially motivated, she felt inferior as a prospective pledge because she views her beauty as not matching the standard "white" definition of beauty. I am not concerned about whether or not she was really at a disadvantage because of her race, but rather that she felt that way. An atmosphere which causes people to feel ostracized if they rush an organization of a predominantly different race needs adjustment, and it is time that people stop ignoring the problem apathetically if it does not apply to them.

The university works ardently to promote a comfortable atmosphere for everyone and there are many programs to help minorities feel at home here; however, there are not enough programs that socially integrate all races. Organizations such as the Black Student Alliance and the Chinese Student Association are certainly beneficial for their members, but they are (for the most part) separate from the white students. The Mosaic House, which houses students with an eclectic mix of cultural backgrounds, integrates all races together. However, the influential effects of arrangements like that one on the entire student body seem minimal at best in promoting social integration. At worse, it perpetuates segregation by separating races. Around the university, you may see one black student walking with several white students, or vice versa, but there are few if any social cliques where there are several whites and blacks who all hang out together. Integrating the largest social network of the university is the most promising way to change that.

One might argue that forcing students to rush together would destroy the unique personalities of each house because all white and black organizations would have to consolidate traditions by conforming to each other. This is pure nonsense, because a race is not a personality. All of the predominantly white sororities that I rushed had an entirely different personality, style, and tradition. People of all races share music, fashion, and partying interests, even if one particular kind of music or style of dress is associated with a certain race. I belong to a sorority that does not have one black member, yet I find myself jamming to hip-hop at every party. Aside from provisions regarding rush and safety, each house makes its own rules. Therefore, no sorority would have to change its character to participate in an integrated rush.

People cannot be forced to change the tradition of their greek organization, so I am not proposing that any all white or black organization be forced to accept pledges of a different race. Each one can do as they wish. An integrated rush process in which each organization both continues their traditions by choosing among rushees, and allows people who do not want to be in an organization composed entirely of their own race feel comfortable, is the optimal situation for all. Greek life at the university is substantial; its formal integration would mark a true milestone in the promotion of racial harmony. The final question to ask is: Are students going to sit around and wait until the rest of society fixes racial problems for them over time, or are they going to be the daring catalysts themselves?

Sinead Murphy CLAS II