Gays More Welcome to Go Greek

(Photos.com; sorry, but when I think of the Greek system, I think of beer)
Apparently more than three-quarters of LGB fraternity and sorority members are out to their brothers and sisters.

"Overall the research is very encouraging and echoes the change in attitudes from younger generations to be more open-minded and inclusive of LGBT people," said Sue Rankin, Ph.D., the lead researcher for the study by Lambda 10. "However, as the results suggest, we still have some work to do given that over 50% of current undergraduate (n=98) respondents reported that the climate within their chapters was somewhat homophobic."

Fifty percent is about on par with what I figured. At my college, about half of the fraternity guys I knew called everything "gay" and girls made out with each other so dudes can watch... then again, I went to school with a lot of meatheads and skeezy people. I'm sure there are a lot of colleges with a more accepting Greek system.

Lambda 10's Research on Fraternities and Sororities

Comments

[Doug]

I'm a very openly bisexual college student, and I wish I'd see more stories like this. I'm a very active member of the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity and, as a chapter, we have a history of accepting gay and bisexual brothers.

Fraternities are about brotherhood, no matter who you are. This isn't Animal House. These guys have done more for me than any group of guys I've ever met. I'm about to spend my second year on my chapter's exec board and even had the proud opportunity to run for president. My best friends are my brothers, those in other fraternities, and the girls in the sororities.

I wish every freshman coming into college could meet the people I've met. I wouldn't trade my greek experience for anything in the world.

[Chris]

I agree with Doug, my university (Grand Valley State University - Go Lakers!) has a very open greek system. My Fraternity, Theta Chi gave me a bid to join when they knew I was president of our GSA. I even ended up being president of my chapter with a gay vice-president, and it didn't phase anyone. I believe there might be a correlation between school size and acceptability. GVSU is a not a big ten type of school, we're a smaller(feeling) liberal arts institution, so we talk about diversity all the time. So yeah that's my two cents! Go Greek!

[Jonathan Justice]

While I am so old now that college people are young enough to be my grandchildren, I did want to add to this. I was not even out to myself when I was pledged by the Iota Chapter of Alpha Sigma Phi at Cornell at the beginning of 1967, but I am pretty sure the people who met me in rush figured it out, and invited me to join anyway. It was a complicated time. Only a year or two before the chapter had decided to drop the 'gentlemen's agreement' that had formerly steered good candidates, who were Jewish, to more Jewish identified fraternities and go ahead and pledge them. Meanwhile we were to be that last class to be subjected to traditional hazing as pledges. When another guy who had pledged in my class had to leave Cornell because of psychological problems that included homosexuality issues, the gist of the discussion was compassion and a wish that he could come back to school soon.

More than 15 years ago the house newsletter started to include references to the domestic happiness of graduated gay brothers. It was only after that that I began to learn that, in a lot of good ways, for a national fraternity, Alpha Sig was about as left wing as you could get.

It probably helped that the house itself is a recycled movie star cottage on a ledge above a waterfall that shakes the ground when the Cornell bluff gets serious rain. The alumni magazine featured Vincent Price's charitable works too.