Opinion | So you think you can reform Greek life

Written by a female junior account owner of Abolish Greek Life Chapman

I created an Abolish Greek life Instagram page to provide a safe space where individuals who have had negative experiences within Greek life could anonymously voice their stories and concerns. As an institution, Greek life has functioned without any external checks and balances; accounts like mine function to correct this imbalance. I choose to remain anonymous because I do not want the page to be perceived as peddling one person’s “revenge” or agenda.  

The primary goal is to educate students so they can make a personal decision regarding their involvement. It is unlikely that the Chapman administration will outright ban Greek life on campus, especially given its financial advantages for the school. Thus, we hope to achieve collective action via individuals deciding to no longer engage with Greek life. We understand that many students would prefer to reform Greek life. However, after thorough research, it is clear that this is unattainable for many reasons. 

First, it is doubtful that a concerted reform effort could be maintained in an organization with a four-year revolving door of student leaders. Second, an often-unacknowledged truth is that students have very little authority over the policies of their fraternities and sororities. Individual chapters are governed by national boards with CEOs and other executives, usually Greek life alumni well beyond their college years. These national boards have vast control over the purse strings of fraternities and sororities, and essentially have final say over the conduct of individual chapters. 

The Abolish Greek Life movement has documented numerous instances where national boards have openly resisted reform. For example, a significant step towards equality would be implementing a sliding scale for dues based on each student’s financial aid profile. However, this would entail a loss of profit for the national boards; there has already been documentation of its rejection as a viable reform option at various chapters nationwide. Every attempt at meaningful reform would be an uphill battle with this profit-motivated authority. 

Take, for instance, Chapman Interfraternity Council and Panhellenic’s recently announced Diversity and Inclusion Committee; having this committee is certainly better than not having one, but it feels like, “too little, too late.” Before anyone can say whether this committee has the potential for positive change, they need to release concrete action steps rather than a vague narrative about education and collaboration. I hope their intentions are genuine, but it’s possible that these steps are reactive attempts to save face. 

There is also no guarantee that “educating” members will change their behavior; for example, plenty of fraternities undergo sexual misconduct training, and yet sexual assault continues to be prevalent in Greek culture. It is also crucial for them to produce annual Diversity and Inclusion reviews, such as releasing a public report that would include data on the demographic makeup of the chapters and national executive boards. At the bare minimum, this would help students gain a fuller picture of the organization they are joining. It would also hold Greek life publicly accountable for their diversity commitments and hopefully put pressure on the national boards to reevaluate their leadership examples.

Finally, true reform is unattainable because Greek life is founded upon and thrives off of exclusivity. The prestige of exclusivity is inherent to the financial gatekeeping of dues, the secretive and morally dubious recruitment methods, the strict rules about who can attend certain parties and wear certain letters and every other distinguishing characteristic of Greek life. The oft-mentioned benefits of Greek life – friendships, philanthropy, networking – can and do exist outside of the Greek life umbrella; better yet, they exist in inclusive manners. 

Greek life does not serve any irreplaceable function on campus. Contrary to popular belief, it is a privilege to have Greek life on campus, not a right. And when a privilege has been nefariously abused as much as Greek life has been, it’s worth considering whether it should be revoked.