Hello everyone, and welcome to our weekly round up of the who, whats, whys and how in the worlds of black Greekdom. But before we do that, I want to let you know that we're going to have some interesting blog entries coming in the next few weeks. We'll talk about non African Americans in BGLOs, and then we'll talk about African Americans in predominately white greek organizations. I'm going to have a few black Greek lists, and we'll talk about deference, and whether that philosophy has been warped to create an atmosphere where people who don't deserve respect, get respect. We'll talk about how Alpha is going green, and how some of the fraternities are amping up their big brother efforts. And lastly, more You Should Know… profiles are coming up. So check the Divine Nine blog each day to see what I'm up to. But now, let's get back to the news…and as always, if you don't see your organization in the listing, I didn't find anything in the news. You can send news to me (as long as it has a news link) to alpha1906@gmail.com or on twitter: @alpha1906
In breaking news, Kappa Tavis Smiley is teaming with Alpha Cornel West, in a new radio show called imaginatively enough, Smiley & West. I'm assuming that President Obama will receive a lot of attention…
In other Kappa news, Nupes from the South Miami area get a mention for their community service work…While Alabama Kappas get a write up about their Kappa League efforts with the youth…And here's a cautionary example of what happens when your organization hazes. You may find yourself smeared by association, even if you had nothing to do with it.
Fort Worth, Tx Zetas have a Bowl for Kids' Sake Event coming up in October…At the University of Houston, Zetas held a memorial for their soror, and are organizing to create a foundation in her name…And you can check out pix of St. Pete Zetas and Sigmas doing community service in Florida.
Birmingham Omegas held an educational forum at their house, targeting the high dropout rate of high schoolers…and Florida Omegas continued the theme during their statewide workshop on the topic. In the sporting news, two Omega high school head coaches, from the same college chapter even, go head to head in an important rivalry game.
At Penn State, Alpha Kappa Alpha members are hosting a book club and are selling orange ribbons in support of a local girls shelter…AKA at the University of South Carolina Aiken are promoting domestic violence education…And AKA's in New Jersey win a grant to create a proper headstone for a Revolutionary War slave named Caesar…
Meridian, Mississippi Sigmas get some television coverage for their new inductees…And in Tennessee, members of Phi Beta Sigma hold their annual Sleep Out for the Homeless. In less happy news, one person was killed and four injured outside of an off campus Phi Beta Sigma party near Seton Hall.
Battle Creek, Michigan Deltas talk about their work in an article…Deltas at Cal State Fullerton held a breast cancer awareness forum…And Michigan Deltas help organize and participate in an AIDS walk.
The Alphas at the University of Rochester face a university investigation after a recent party that got out of hand…Phoenix Alphas mourn the loss of a brother…Also in Arizona, a former Alpha General President speaks at a luncheon, advocating for the MLK Memorial in DC.
Salisbury SGRhos are participating in a take a loved one to the doctor drive…
That's it for this week. Check back next week for more news and notes!
Lawrence Ross is the author of the Los Angeles Times best-seller The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities. His newest book, Blackballed: The Black and White Politics of Race on America’s Campuses, is a blunt and frank look at the historical and contemporary issue of campus racism on predominantly white college campuses. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.