Good evening i’m micah ike chairman for the 2021 east st louis national panelai council honors to greek week tonight you’re in for a special treat thank you for joining us for throwback thursday this program features interviews from some of our more seasoned fraters and sorors and they’re going to talk to
You about what it was like being greek then and now what i mean by season is by years of service to their organization each member has been in their organization 30 years or more with some of them having 50 plus years of uninterrupted service the east st louis national panhellenic council is
Rich in history our members often get the opportunity to share their thoughts their wisdom and their ideas with members of their own organization so tonight is a treat for them as well the divine nine organizations range in founding from 1906 to 1963 with alpha phi alpha fraternity incorporated being the first
And i otified theta fraternity incorporated being the last to join our divine nine we thank you again for joining us tonight and we hope you enjoy the program for more than a century black greek organizations have made their voices heard on college campuses and in communities across the country
Well the founders of these organizations they understood that the pathway forward for us was together through unity house democratic caucus chair hakeem jeffries joined kappa alpha psi fraternity at the age of 18. and it really was the first time in my life that anyone of importance and authority suggested to me
That they saw some leadership qualities and attributes uh within me and it’s a moment that i’ve never forgotten moments like that shared by many in the divine nine the nine black sororities and fraternities that comprise the national panhellenic council vice president kamala harris has been outspoken
About the impact her sorority has had on her and along the way you find people who help you become your true self for me that was my beloved alpha kappa alpha sisters in an election cycle marked by historic first it’s hard to ignore the role these organizations have played
Georgia elected its first black senator and america sent a black woman to the white house both members of the divine nine when i look at what alpha kappa alpha sorority incorporated and other members of divine nine are doing now we’re seeing that they are dedicated to voter education mobilization and
Participation we’re also seeing that even during a pandemic the service never stops ground breakers and trailblazers have always in so many different ways been connected to the black fraternity and sorority organizations including the great shirley chisholm who was a proud member of the delta sigma theta sorority i have always been a catalyst
For change the founders of these organizations they perhaps could never have envisioned that one day we would ascend to the highest levels of power and authority in the land including within the congress and now the white house but i certainly know they dreamed it and believed that they were laying a foundation
For great things to occur but because of my hbcu and divine nine family i know i’m never the only person who looks like me or has had my life experiences even today we are 113 years after our founding that is a strong legacy and we’re still able to see the ways in which
The united states does not treat all of its citizens equally have they gotten better definitely they have definitely improved from where they were 113 years ago but can they be improved also yes we are passionate about the same issues within our communities within the world at large
And we work together in order to achieve common goals and if that is a family i don’t know what is a family that will remain rooted behind members as they embark on their barrier-breaking journeys all right uh good afternoon uh brother lloyd My name is ambassador long and we just want to pick your brain sir about your time in a fraternity i’m going to ask you questions all right okay so what is your advice on greek unity back when you pledge uh in reference to now
Well i i was i kind of thought about it and i think greek unity at that time um and i i assume when you say great unity you’re talking not only alpha phi alpha but you are you also talking other organizations yes sir okay and and i think back at that time
Uh uh pen hell played a large part in uh uh greek unity uh they they gave uh events uh where they uh you had awards programs for the uh uh different uh uh members in your particular fraternity and they would we would pick brother of the year and uh
A new brother of the year uh things like that and we would go to the wars program that was pretty nice uh we also had we also had a picnic uh that we did together uh that uh brought the chat brought the organizations together and we normally supported each other and
When they gave their different events we would support each other very much so and i find that that that is still true today i think pan hell plays a large part in in the uh unity among the greek community but i i see another another avenue or another uh
Aspect of it and that’s the social media i think uh social media has taken it to another level uh i think uh communications you know what each organization is doing when their social function is going on uh if something has to come up uh real quick uh each organization can get in
Touch with one another uh there is exposure the newsletter uh which which uh gives each organization an idea what’s going on in the given month and so i i actually feel that uh the uh through the panhellenic uh actually our our greek unity is even stronger now
And uh we’ve grown closer because the communications is so much better between organizations that’s a good point that’s a good point i mean it’s really important for us to support one another because at the end of the day you know we’re people of color trying to just make a
Graduate from college and going to do great work in the community so it’s really good that um that you all have set the precedence for us back in your day and that we can still uh do some of those things today now one thing i would like to see though with the paneling
And i noticed a lot of times uh i noticed that the panic atlantic duplicates things and asking you to support their you know different different scholarships and different things that they already do what i would like to see panalytic do is is to to bring the chapters together and to
To build a community center uh which actually we all could use uh and for the community where you can have banquets uh uh provide that for the community office space rates uh and uh other things could happen with that community set but i would like to see us go a little bit larger
Instead of supporting these the things that we we support each uh each other with it’s actually a little larger and make a big difference in the community that’s a good point that’s a really good point um so the next question is you know what do you care to share about the social climate
From then versus now from when you became an alpha uh versus now uh i remember i was reflecting on thinking about that in the time i came out alpha i could remember after a chapter meeting uh we would some of the brothers different groups of brothers we’d get together we’d go out
And we’d go out we maybe to one club or maybe two clubs and you had to remember to tell that when you got home to tell the uh uh the wives that uh you know we had a nice long meeting on that era once while brothers will forget
And get in trouble but we had we had a good time doing that uh we you know we still had the picnics uh we had we i think seemed like we did a little bit more family things together i know during the founding state program
We would not only bring the wives we but we bring our kids to the founders day program and they got to get to get a little bit taste of alpha uh we would have picnics uh we had formal debt we had more formal dances back then
Uh where we we like to dress and and uh wise to put on the evening gowns and we would put on on our tuxedos and gather it like that yeah uh the community programs we had what we call the judge billy jones program or which was an oratorical program that
Got the youth youth involved in making speeches as they do with our district and state and national level uh we had uh botanians uh where we got the young men involved and uh it’s just the reverse of the continuing with the ladies but we got that involved and
We also involved our mentoring program the likes of alpha and we got involved uh with the midwestern uh leadership development institute where we would uh choose some young men who were amazing we tried to get the seniors who were getting close to graduation but we would take
Other young men and would introduce them to a college in a different state and they would meet other young men from other states and we’d have activities the college would have an opportunity to tell what they offered and what you know but it was a very good program
That we did in the past we we kind of haven’t done those things uh lately uh uh but uh coming up to today’s uh climate uh things have somewhat changed we’ve got the the uh the derby party which has been a very successful event unfortunately coleman has kept us from getting that
Uh but uh but we got the june 10th coming up and i think again the social media has played a real large in the social climate in that we’ve got what you call group me yeah and the brothers they they love group especially with these football games my god
But i’m becoming more you know knowledgeable about sports because of the group me but it also gives brothers an opportunity on the different things that the agendas that they have going on like like yourself and the poetry that you read and then and it gives
Gives a a venue where you can let the brothers know that this is what’s going on and give them an opportunity to go so that has again the social media has made it a big difference it doesn’t seem sometimes we may not meet physically as much as we did in the past uh
But we meet a probably a lot more uh over the media on that and so we we stay in touch uh we might even you know i don’t know if we learned more about each other over the media as you would have been uh uh close uh one by one
In person i kind of think maybe in person you might get a little bit more information versus over over the social media but all in all it’s been good uh i don’t think it’s been a a distraction for us especially in this time of code i mean it’s it’s kept us together
Definitely the social media has yes it has yes it has kudos to technology right that’s correct so our last question uh and thank you for taking the time to speak with me today sir but um our last question is what has been an active member of alpha phi alpha
Um how long have you been in alpha now uh for it will be 47 years and they wow wow congratulations on that um so what has been an active member of alpha phi alpha for 47 years meant to you uh you know i thinking about that is you know
I guess first of all it’s the brotherhood uh the brothers themselves uh being in different fields and different interests and i i think one of the big highlights for me uh really motivated still motivates me he was going to a general convention my first young convention was in atlanta georgia
And just meeting the meeting brothers from all over the country and from all different backgrounds and brothers some brothers that you saw on tv you saw in the newspaper you know and uh one thing became very apparent to me is that the brothers can be very arrogant and egotistical
On that uh but when you get in the meetings you get to talk to them you can you can also you know that they’re very civic-minded and very committed that really struck me and every year that i go to a general convention it just motivates me more
But just but the brothers that in the local chapter the things we’ve done the fun we’ve had the chances we we’ve gone uh opportunities we’ve had it has motivated three years i must admit though as as i i’m getting over in my in my 70s now and the motivation has it was
Starting to wane uh however this last couple years with the uh influx of new members younger brothers coming in the enthusiasm that they they display the willingness to to work has really motivated me and got me more more interested and and been more uh more going now i’m kind of quieting
Down in my activities uh i’ve held every office in the local chapter except presidency uh but i’m crying down and wanting to let the younger brothers have their opportunity so i’m sitting back and enjoying it that’s please sir that’s great but thank you for all you do to inspire
Um brothers from your generation and then my generation and then all those in between um and just thank you for taking the time to talk with me today okay brother long i appreciate the call and and the opportunity to do to give my opinion i thank you for that
Yes sir it’s my pleasure and we’ll talk to you soon okay now you have a good evening you too okay bye-bye bye-bye good evening sir laura jones how are you i am so glad that you are here with me this evening and i’d like to have a little conversation with you
And i’d like to talk to you about your years in service as a golden soror for alpha kappa alpha sorority incorporated and my first question would be what is your advice on greek unity back where you pledged and now wow that was a long time ago marshay
Well as you know i attended gremlins it was grambling college at that time but now it’s grambling state university and during that time as a college student back there i don’t remember too much unity between the sororities and fraternities on campus because uh there was really as far as i knew
No pandolinic counselor and of course on a college campus most of the organizations are really concerned about themselves their own organization and their existence and presence on campus but as far as it is today i see some unity we saw that most recently during the most recent election when our soros sarah cameler
Ran for vice president and that was when the divine nine and all of the organizations came together and put their heads together to make sure that she would be a winner and with that now we know that she was and she is our vice president today unity
Is somewhat more evident we can see it as the groups work together to promote the programs of each organization so i can truly say that now we see more of it than we saw back in the days when i became an aka well okay that sounds fantastic
And now what do you care to share about the social climate then and now in reference to the social climate back there uh during that time it hasn’t really changed very much from when i was in school we beginning we are beginning to see a glimpse of hope and we thought we were
But now it seems like things are a little bit different and hopefully with our new president and all that we have going on in our sororities and our our groups that we we will begin to see the social climate improve we just need to know that it can be done
And it will improve reality has to kick in and we have to have develop a different attitude and more respect for each other as a country per se more than as the individual organizations fantastic and what has been what has been an active member of alpha kappa alpha
Sorority for years meant to you alpha kappa alpha sorority there’s nothing like it when i became a member i became committed committed for a lifetime and i knew that uh with alpha kappa alpha there were many there would be many opportunities afforded to me as a 50-year member i can truly say that
This sisterhood has helped me to develop into a woman of finer woman who a lady of find a womanhood and what we can say is that afrikappa alpha is a family we have different families as we go through life we have our church family we have our social families
We have our friendship families but the family of alpha kappa alpha soros there’s nothing like it as you know when you go to conferences and we all see each other it’s like a big reunion everybody enjoys being a part of the group and working to help each other and as
Far as being a golden soror there’s nothing like it the opportunities are there to be nurtured and to just be spoiled by the younger sorrows and as i look at alpha kappa alpha now i’m so glad to see that many of our younger sorrows are moving into leadership roles we all
Had to start somewhere and when we did there were those more seasoned sorrows right here in delta delta omega who helped us to become what we are today and believe me they were some strong women and they actually helped us to grow as we did and but the main thing is
That we were acceptance to their guidance and mentorship so i can see that that can become real a real asset to our younger sorrows and we are just enjoying the benefits that we enjoy now that they are are just nurturing us through the many activities that they are doing
For us as golden souls well sorry laura that was very interesting i appreciate you talking with me about this but before i end let me ask you did you say 50 years or on on april 1st this year it would be 59 years and i have never ever been enacted
Been an actively involved sorrow for 59 years how exciting i’m not here for that yet but i can’t wait and again i am so happy to have been able to talk with you and get some wisdom and advice from you thank you very much sir laura
Thank you it’s been my pleasure you have a good evening thank you bye-bye i got um myself terry harthorn here uh here with brother uh wendell and uh has a couple questions to ask you uh about greek life pretty much um first question to be um what is your advice on greek
Unity um back when you pledged it now well uh let me say that uh back in 1977 uh i’d love to tell you that it was dramatically different from the way it is now as it relates to uh greek unity uh but it’s not uh i think that the the
Great thing about the greeks while there’s always competition it’s that when we all uh needed to come together whether it was a political advancement which is what i say see the similarity in or whether it was community service we all individually always did our thing just like we do now but whenever there
Is a critical need for us to come together with it whether it’s to get out information regarding the importance of the vote whether it’s uh getting out information regarding uh covet 19 or whether it’s information uh just basic things like food drives and food insecurity and things like that
Right we were doing very similar things to uh back in 1977 1988 back then uh with it being in atlanta we were helping every black political candidate because it was still the early days of first blacks getting elected to various positions in the city or the county we were we
Were doing our things before the internet we were the internet you know knocking on doors going in neighborhoods black and white neighborhoods asking for uh votes having a series of question and answer practices that allowed us to answer anything that somebody who may not be for the black
Uh elected official or the person running for position uh we were always prepared for that so the long and the short of it is it’s very similar uh not a lot of difference other than clearly the technology now but uh the fraternities and the sororities just like now worked in concert with
Each other to make sure that we provided our communities and in atlanta uh which is uh in my estimation the blackest uh community outside of africa on the planet we were always communicating with uh our communities to make sure that the best information could be provided whether you were
A kappa whether you were aka whether you were zeta or sigma we always worked in unison uh always competitive but again always in unison we always tried to be the best that we could be and when it was individual just like now we always try to be
The best that we could be as individual organizations but always in partnership and concert right okay okay so what uh my second question would be what do you care to share about the social climate from then to now uh i think that that’s actually a very good question
Uh sadly it has not changed from my perspective there was always a challenge around black elected officials there was always a need for a black organization and in most instances the young people the college age people the fraternities and sororities and then the different branches of organizations like uh snick
And uh naacp we were always involved back in those days in making sure that we were addressing whatever was going on like you know for example as a as a college athlete that you were you know we college athletes during the mlk celebrations we were not supposed to be marching
Uh during the mlk week in the midst of preparing for basketball games in the midst of trying to get congress to uh give martin luther king a national holiday and you know we oh well i’m sorry we would sneak out yeah and uh march and hopefully not get caught by the basketball coach
Because we knew the value of the importance and we were doing it as sororities as fraternities and you know again kind of like the answer to the first question always engaged uh and quite honestly sadly to some degree no real difference than you know 40 plus years later but
At the same time uh proud that the sororities and the fraternities were always actively engaged uh never saw a bougie side of sororities and fraternities growing up and growing up in the atlanta university center while they may have been perceived to be bougie we were always in the streets we were always
Engaged in whatever was unfair and whether it was marching whether it was disseminating information like i said door-to-door during critical elections uh whether it was marches into communities that were unfair uh two black people we were always doing our thing and uh and and i don’t see any real difference now
We’re still doing our thing right okay okay so another question would be um what has uh what has been an active member of your organization for years meant to you well you know you know during one of our ritualistic activities there’s something that i always say that can be said publicly that uh
Outside of being a son outside of being a christian the longest thing i’ve ever been uh has been a kappa i’ve been a capital longer than i’ve been in a high school graduate i’ve been a kappa longer than i’ve been a college graduate i’ve been a capper longer than i’ve been
A husband father husband grandfather etc in the formal workplace so it has always meant an incredible amount to to me as it relates to not necessarily who i am because i i feel like i bring to kappa something that that kappa needs which is a a forward-thinking black man who’s not afraid to
Stand up for what he believes is right and also someone who’s extraordinarily brotherly who believes in in in all the attributes of kappa alpha psi uh try to live it every day always have tried to live it every day and uh for me it is a critically important piece of who i am
Internally uh well i may not uh utilize it externally uh all the time it is very clear i think once people start talking to me that i am without a doubt a member of kappa alpha psi and uh an absolute a an absolute person who believes in in all the attributes of
Being a kappa from from the perspective of being a good contributing member of society always felt like that uh kappa is near and dear to me i am uh third generation and anxiously waiting for my for for my grandson to become fourth generation he still got about 10 years to go
Because uh all that all that is good in kappa i think is uh no different than all that is good in wendeli kimbrough so for me you know kappa is as good as it gets and uh for me kappa is something that i’m always going to contribute to because
Kappa is uh good for for black america cap is good for all of america capital alpha psi is good for every campus that it’s on uh and and and from my perspective there’s nothing better there you go there you go okay well uh that was the last question that i had
And back in the old days 50 years ago we isolated ourselves more than we do now we did not participate with other groups nearly as much as we do today we mostly stayed in our own groups competed with other uh fraternities and sororities to see who could throw the best parties and the
Best get-togethers and brag about them long-time member of me besides my fraternity has allowed me to build local and international friendships with a lot of like-minded people networking socially with civic groups the all the divine mind groups have uh assumed the responsibility for civic activities and issues now a lot
More so than we did a number of years ago omega sci-fi and new guy chapter of eastside wisdom enough especially they’ve been involved with uh all kinds of activities being named international chapter of the year for several years being named our district chapter of the year for several years
And all because of the activities that we’ve participated in things like blood drives voter registration drives uh city cleanups uh information sharing for uh the community i’m real proud of what uh this group of younger brothers have come in over the years have uh participated in and done and helped
Build a reputation for omega scifi that i think has been beneficial in leading and exposing some of the other groups who are now participating just as well from johnson c smith university the history of black greek letter organizations like the one i’m a part of alpha kappa alpha sorority incorporated
Dates back to the early 1900s when african-american students were excluded from greek organizations on predominantly white campuses black sororities and fraternity works were created on the basis of exclusion right at some point um there were a group of black men who were trying to be part of organization and they needed votes
Um one white vote meant they couldn’t be a part of the organization so they decided to start their own leland howard is the president of the national panhellenic council of charlotte an organization that brings all nine black greek letter organizations together for one common cause we are able to work together
To ensure that there’s change in the community we work together to ensure that policies and social policies are being pushed amplify output fraternity incorporated is the first black greek letter fraternity founded in 1906 at cornell university alpha kappa alpha sorority incorporated is the first black greek letter sorority
Founded on the campus of howard university in 1908 also called the divine nine these sororities and fraternities were founded on the principle of service and it’s a value that is still upheld to this day we’re out of the community we’re helping with voter education we’re holding helping with health care education um homelessness
You know we’re feeding the homeless we’re out collecting supplies over the years african americans have joined black greek letter organizations for a variety of reasons i turned to a few of my colleagues to find out their why my mother and my aunts are all members of delta sigma theta sorority incorporated
And my uncle is a member of omega sci-fi so growing up i saw the service i saw them being dedicated to giving back to their community my stepdads remember kept outside so that’s all i ever knew that’s all he ever told me about the segment was like they helped me move in
They kind of like show to me they guided me so it just in my head i was like well if i was to ever you know play it it would be probably that because i mean that’s what stood out to me the most they kind of adopted me as a little
Brother who came in as depression and i just admired the respect that they they demanded from the team and the respect that they got on campus and it was something that i wanted to be a part of a part of organizations that often felt underestimated we enjoy being underestimated because when we
Walk into spaces and and people have doubted us we’re showing beyond compare that we’re ready um we’re excited and and that we we have been leading for a long time it’s just a matter of other people recognizing hi i’m jackie settles a member of delta sigma theta sorority incorporated
He saint louis alumni chapter i have been a doctor for 51 years i have been financial and active with east st louis alumni chapter and epsilon’s eye chapter since i was made in epsilon’s eye in 1970 so i’m very proud to be asked to give some uh ideas and thoughts about things then
And things now well i had to do a little reality check and i’m going to say this very honestly back 51 years ago the realization that we were in the midst of a war we were having trouble on campuses all kinds of crises were going on
And some of us were a little standoffish with each other our greek letter organizations were separate as opposed to unified and yet in the moon of the crisis we realized we were very dependent upon each other most of us were members of the black student association at siu edwardsville and
We like being part of the students association but it also made us aware of all the things that were going on in the community in the nation on campuses and so we realized one of the things we had to do was be more supportive to each other without the support of each other
We could not accomplish our many public service activities our programs that we wanted to do we had vague sales on campuses and who you’re going to sell to you can’t sell just to each other and we realized that the reality was we needed to be friend and be be involved with all the
Other groups and they also realized the same thing and so we became more unified and united in all of the activities today that story is the same story the crisis is different the world is different but we know one thing as an organization and pamela olynyk is teaching us that
The panoramic council which we all are members of all the greek black letter organizations or members of realize that we must be unified we must work together we must stay together we got we now have elected a black female to the white house and we did that together through our activities in voter
Registration and all other kinds of activities paying monies to various groups to help get the word out that we were together in united so that is then and now we know we need each other and we must work together to be united because it gives me encouragement to see our young soil wars
Actively and aggressively involved in making the sorority strong let me start with this in terms of my 50 years of course i’ve been active the entire 51 years i’ve never been inactive i’m a golden life member paid in full which doesn’t mean anything anymore because it took you
You were supposed to be paid in full in 10 years and my husband was i was fortunate enough to have a husband who said oh let’s pay this off so he did but you asked the question what has it meant to me it’s meant being involved with like-minded women
Women who care who have principles who want to do something special in the community to make it better and stronger to you today talk about i’m talking to a child on the phone who’s a student of mine it was so encouraging and so important because as a young woman
In the work field that’s exactly what i did i talked to my at that time students or young people that were involved in the correctional system and i had other women who were also doctors who were involved in the system some of them however were not
And they asked the question what can we do to help support you in what you’re doing in law enforcement and people like lavonda and mary our sorrow who passed away saw abby martin one of our charter members of east england’s alumni chapter who passed away at 102 and was always active
It made me know the need to work with individuals with like-minded ideas who wanted to serve the community who wanted to give back and that was the role that the sorority played for me working with people that helped me to help what i was doing move forward go forward and that i could
Also help other women just like me who are interested in making this community stronger better and bigger and we’re going to continue this fight because the fight goes on now as we face the coronavirus as we face women’s women’s shelters that need furnishing as we face children who are now
In the homes where there’s food needed and we’re needing to get the food to them that we’re able to reach out together to make life better for the community together we’re strong and that’s what the sorority has meant to me the strength that we get from each other
And from building and growing as a community with a purpose and as a sorority with a purpose and i am deeply deeply in love with delta sigma theta sorority it has done a lot for me with me and about me today i have a pleasure sitting down with
One of our members brother gerald fuller who is going to give us some ideas and share some wisdom about his walk in this great fraternity of ours firebase signature territory incorporated brother phil how are you doing today i’m doing great dr wills how about yourself how you doing
I’m doing very well uh thanks for great time to sit in for this uh interview today and shed some light on on the folks of mphc and others about uh your time as a as a member of this wonderful organization so the first thing i want to take a take
A stab at brother fuller just to talk about unity amongst amongst greeks so what is your advice on greek unity back when you pledge and now great question thank you for the question brother wills um you know fraternities and sororities were founded based on their individual uh principles so
When you pledging that organization your your focus is to become a transition into a bond a brotherhood or sisterhood and become the best member that you can for that organization knowing that most of our principles involve a social aspect back in the day my advice to the collegiate bros then was to leverage
That social lens um as a way of showing unity among the greek organizations on the yard at the campus of siue today my advice is not to only continue to leverage that social lens but also the professional diversity to show both unity and strength uh while creating network opportunities in those positive
Relationships with other greeks gotcha wonderful answer uh especially with in viewing this answer from a from a social lens i’ma stay there in the social space here for a moment and and just actually what do you care to share about the social climate um then and now
Um back then on the yard the social climate was more siloed meaning you saw uh sigmas hanging with sigmas akas hanging with akas um you know and so on but from an alumni perspective the social climate is more diverse in most cases your best friend is a part of another organization
And so you see more um fraternities hanging with other fraternities and more sorrows hanging with other sororities as we creating those networking opportunities and those positive relationships great great the relationships are definitely important um in any organization is also good to make sure you’re you’re sharing your your love with other
Organizations as well so as brother fuller you have uh been a member of firebase fraternity incorporated for 34 years now i’m sure you’ve definitely had some times that you have been proud of being a part of this great organization um so this next question i just want to know from you what has
What has been an active member of your organization for 34 years meant to you oh brother wills it means a lot man to um to be embedded into the principles and philosophy of this great organization uh it puts me in the space where i don’t never want to stop contributing and
Learning about the things of phi beta sigma while creating lifelong relationships with the bros and their family oh great great my name is henry anderson i’m a member i’ve been a member of 587 fraternity for 48 years and i am a proud member of new gamer sigma chapman
Many people chose to belong to the black greek organizations because it was a means of having a social outlet and an identity nowadays we have many avenues to network and socialize therefore i think people who belong and new people who complete the mip process are looking to try to right the many
Wrongs of society the many social injustices that we endured in the past we are also trying to help our young brothers and sisters by providing mentorship and educational programs the social climate 48 years ago was somewhat tense as part of the divine nine organizations in the past stayed within their respective groups
They didn’t come out and socialize too much with other groups uh and they did not combine efforts to work together today it is different we strive to work together on community projects and we even sometimes do large social events together there is a feeling of solidarity being an active member
Of phi beta sigma fraternity incorporated for 48 years has afforded me the opportunity to meet a lot of individuals who share the same ideals and principles furthermore being a member of phi beta sigma has truly driven home the idea that i belong to a group of conscious me
Who truly understands the principle that we are truly our brother’s people everyone i am here with sigma gamma world’s cultured pearl sore tommy randolph good afternoon sarah randolph good afternoon my sister we’re talking to our sorors and our frighters who have been in our organizations 50 years plus
And my question to you is what is your perception of greek unity back when you pledge to where it is now back when i pledged we had a ball all greeks had involved we were friends we supported each other when one group had something everyone was there when the other group
Had something we were all there we were like one big happy family the social climate then was always positive everybody had everybody’s back uh matter what organization you were in we were all in it together we were like brothers and sisters i can’t really speak on how it is now
With the undergrads but with the graduate chapters we are pretty much on the same page we are all friends we know each other we are families we are in different organizations we have families and different organizations but we come to well come together very good through the national panamanic council
So we’re having a good time we’re enjoying ourselves and everybody’s positive as far as i can tell and i’m loving it that is your take on the social climate of greek them then and now sora randolph what has been an active member of sigma gamma rho for the past 55 years
Been meant to you i am loving it the camaraderie from the day one when we came in see i can’t do this it’s bittersweet i am the fourth i believe oldest sorrow in our chapter all of the other stories are gone and i miss them they were ladies of refinement of culture
They stress being ladies they stress community service and i miss them dearly moving into where we are now this is still here with us we are still involved in community service even though the corona virus we are still out and about doing what we can do with the community
Doing what we were taught back years ago in the 60s from the sororities who have left us this is a very bittersweet moment for me thank you so much sir randolph girl I am divine i am i am greater service greater progress i am sigma gamma rho cultural for service service for humanity i am five biggest signals by culture and by merit i am alpha kappa alpha first of all service of all we shall transcend all i am alpha phi alpha
Community conscious action oriented i am zeta phi beta achievement and every for the human endeavor i am cap outside intelligence is the torch of wisdom i am delta sigma theta friendship is essential to the soul i am omega So i am i am i am i am i am divine i am the bond i am divine divine the history legacy and celebration of african-american greek-lettered organizations
source
