The Greek society’s philanthropy apathy

By Kimberly Krieger
February 24th, 2010
Section: Opinions

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What does the greek community promote more? Philanthropy or parties? Photo Illustration by Bodhi Severns

Sororities and fraternities represent a prominent group of people at CSUN, and through their philanthropies, they have helped various different charities better the world.

There are so many different Greek organizations to choose from, that it must be a mind-boggling experience to pick only one to rush.

Do prospective Greeks feel a true urge for altruism? Is the drive so maddening, that they can’t help but want to pay dues? When they are choosing the group that will represent them for the next 4-6 years, do they care about what philanthropies these groups support?

I doubt it.

The truth of the matter is that, at the end of the day, these groups are social entities. Though they may do great things for their designated charities, this is just a protocol in order to stay chartered. There is a great lack of motivation.

Zeta Beta Tau, a fraternity on campus, donates to The Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles, as well as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and Breast Cancer research. The fraternity holds many events per year, but so far, this year there have only been four dedicated to philanthropies and they said they only plan on holding two more events for their charities before the end of the school year.

If a fraternity is holding countless parties, get-togethers and celebrations each year, why can’t they make more of those into charitable opportunities? If everyone who attended a ZBT party donated one dollar in a jar, I’m sure by the end of the year the fraternity would have tons of money for their philanthropies.

Panhellenic council sorority, Alpha Phi, dedicates their charity time to funding cardiac aid. Through formals such as the Red Dress Ball held in spring, they helped raise $15,000 last year. This is actually a wonderful thing. However, out of the four pillars of their philanthropy, cardiac aid is the only pillar that does not benefit Alpha Phi.

The Forget-Me-Not Foundation is one of the pillars in Alpha Phi’s philanthropy. This is a program that helps Alpha Phi alumni when they are in need. For example, during Hurricane Katrina, Alpha Phi came to the aid of fellow sorority sisters and alums affected by the natural disaster.

This is a great thing to do, but it isolates the good nature of charity. If we only help “our own,” it really isn’t charity after all. It is more like self-preservation. Had Alpha Phi helped everyone affected by Hurricane Katrina, not just their fellow sisters, this pillar of their philanthropy would be taken to an even higher level.

Along with having a pillar that aids alumnus, Alpha Phi also has two pillars that financially help current sisters. The first is a financial aid system that awards college money for sisters in need. The second is a scholarship foundation, where members of Alpha Phi can apply and be considered to win money. This is also fine and dandy, but it does not really seem all too charitable.

Don’t get me wrong, sororities and fraternities are full of wonderful people, and many of them do care about helping others. But there is an unavoidable and undeniable sense of apathy to these philanthropies. Charity should be something people do when they feel passionately committed to a cause, and it definitely should not be something people do just to have fun.

Is there a solution to this seemingly apathetic approach to philanthropy in the Greek system?

These groups could break out of their regular routine of enclosed social interaction. Instead of just rallying to help children in the Children’s Hospital, why not go out and meet some of the children?

Experiencing first-hand what their charities are all about could not only motivate the group to want to do more for the cause, but it would also be a great life experience.

In the end, people who join sororities and fraternities are just like everyone else when it comes to charity and philanthropy. Not many people are initially pulled in by the fact that they could help others, but I’m sure many people in these groups learn to appreciate good deeds. Sororities and fraternities are full of great people, and with some more motivation, they can become even better.

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  • Melissa

    If old men plant trees that they know they will never live to sit in the shade of, then they are planting the trees for future generations to enjoy. If the old men in society (in government) do things for the future and not for themselves right now then society can truly grow.

  • Greeks equal losers

    Dear Pikes,

    Insecure losers. Self Centered children. Mama’s boys. Wish you much luck in the real world. Can’t wait to see you graduate and then attempt to function in the real world. Bet you can’t handle it and continue to hang out and party instead of obtaining a career.

  • On the Right track

    Listen, any member of a fraternity or sorority is a loser since they feel they need to pay for friendship. What losers they are. Wait until the wake up and have to work in the real world. Pikes, DZ, Alpha Phi, you’re in for a rude awakening. Good luck, expect you all to cry to your parents for money in the future.

    • English Major

      Dear OTRT,
      It is clear you have never been in a Greek Organization. I’m currently a grad student, but during my Undergrad at a different University, I was a member of a Greek Organization. A couple facts about it.
      1) My parents are teachers
      2) I was working full-time to support myself, as my parents were only will to pay the 4k a year tuition. I had to pay my own room and board as well as my Fraternity dues.
      3) I didn’t consider the 700 dollars a year “paying for friendship” but rather building lifelong connections. Anytime I’ve revisited Northern California, I had a place to stay. When I needed to be picked up from a train station and driven 20 miles, I had someone to count on. When I was sick, I knew I could count on them to pick up my homework. When I ran for Student Gov’t, I knew I had at least 100 votes already. When I needed an internship, a fellow brother got me in contact with a state official and I was set.

      If you really think that being a fraternity or sorority member is about “paying for friendship” then… that’s just sad sad sad. If you want, OTRT, leave me a message of how to get in contact with you and I can email you to explain the benefits of a Fraternity/Sorority or such.

      • On the Right track

        Sounds like you are they type that depends on others to get through life. Try doing something on your own – be an orignal. Don’t ask others to find jobs for you – work on your on merit. Try it sometime – I bet you’d be more proud of yourself.

  • Matthew Dwayne

    “We ride together, we die together. Frat boys for life.”

  • Bonnie

    Pikes, Including Manny are downright losers. Too old to be in college

    • On the Right track

      agree, people like Manny can’t handle the real world, so they become a professional college student for life. He can’t act his age and must hang with young kids.

  • Ben

    some people were made to be greek. some werent.

    its that simple.

    the fact that they raise money for charities and such is pretty sweet, theres no denying it. you also cant deny that fraternities and sororities spend most of their time intoxicated or humping each other, but f*ck it, if you can be intoxicated and raise money for some kids in a hospital why not.

    if you dont like fraternities and sororities then wander off and find something else to do, there about a bajillion other ways to experience college.

  • cs

    let’s look at it this way.. is the primary objective of sororities and fraternities to support their respective philanthropies? not really. the way i look at it, it’s more of a method of assuaging the stigma being a greek entails.

    basically, it’s a dumb notion to call out a group who gives to charity and tell them that they should be giving more. i like how everyone who calls out the greeks claims to work shifts at soup kitchens; get real, the average college student might throw a dollar in a jar once in a while, but it’s not like the greek community is covetous in a world of mother teresa’s.

    don’t get me wrong, it’s really stupid to throw away newspapers over a poorly constructed opinion piece. no one said greeks were cumulatively intelligent, and the article clearly hurt a sororities’ hubris. this isn’t the greek boston tea party; it’s a pathetic retort to a weak argument. so let’s bust out the kleenex and move on.

  • Jon

    CSUN and AS should revoke their funding of this publication. It is more like a tabloid than a newpaper. And Kim Krieger should be fired.

  • Jon

    Setting the Record Straight; Apathy and Partial Journalism.
    For four years now I have been an active and proud member of the Zeta Beta Tau Fraternity. And for four years I have had to listen to those uninformed individuals, who feel that they understand the Greek Community, despite never having participated in it or having made any viable attempt to understand it. The kind of people whose only real understanding of the Greek Community comes from opinion, media and gossip, not from any verifiable fact.
    Such was the case of a recent opinion article in the Daily Sundial. Yet another un-informed individual with such obvious disdain for a system, which she has little to no real understanding, chose to write a shockingly poorly written article as void of facts as with journalistic impartiality.
    One of the first unfounded and unsupported claims Ms. Krieger made was that we only throw philanthropic events as “a protocol in order to stay chartered”. I must commend Ms. Krieger for her creativity, this is a lie that I have yet to hear, and I have heard many lies about Greek life in my time. While many fraternities and sororities have national philanthropies that they are encouraged to participate in, there is no mandate or requirement to participate. This year, for example was the first time in many years that CSUN’s chapter of ZBT participated in our national’s philanthropy “Get On The Ball” which raises funds for “The Children’s Miracle Network”. And we were never threatened to lose our charter. In fact, we are not REQUIRED to have ANY philanthropies. We do them purely by choice.
    Somehow, I get the idea that Ms. Krieger has never organized a philanthropy event in her entire life. If she had, she would undoubtedly not be writing us off for “only [having] four events dedicated to philanthropies this year… with only two more planned this year” Besides the fact that this is not in actuality true, we have thrown six thus far. ( I would ask Ms. Krieger to check her facts more carefully next time). The amount of time, organization, paperwork, planning, coordination as well as up front expenses makes throwing one of these philanthropic events extremely difficult. And I must say that I am proud that we were able to fit that many in our calendar. Only having 4 (even though we had 6) philanthropies a year is nothing to scoff at. I think Ms. Krieger should try throwing six philanthropies in a year and then try and tell me that we could be doing more.
    Out of the remarkably sparse amount of true facts in her article, there was one that I feel I should draw attention to. She is in fact correct, we “are social entities” we are not a charity organization such as Kiwanis or Rotary. We raise funds and awareness for these charitable causes in our “spare time” in between classes, work, meetings, and yes parties. And yet we still find time to help others. I ask, what has Ms. Krieger done in the last semester for SIDS, Food banks, children’s hospitals, and blood drives? Perhaps she was too busy finding ways to spin the facts to tarnish the reputations of other reputable organizations that she has a grudge against.
    Next the Greek Community was accused of only helping their own, for example in hurricane Katrina. In the wake of that kind of disaster, everyone needs help. FEMA was overwhelmed and obviously could not handle everything, criticizing a sorority for helping their sisters in a time of crisis is a low blow and Ms. Krieger should be ashamed of herself. If a church raises money to help rebuild another church, no one criticizes it. Why should a national sisterhood be any different?
    Next Ms. Krieger attacked our motives. First of all I find it quite crass to attack the integrity or motives of anyone who is willing to donate time, work and money to any charitable cause. No matter what someone’s inspiration, their willingness to help their fellow man is not something to be scoffed at, but something that should be commended and applauded.
    Ms. Krieger made one other decent point however, “charity should be something people do when they feel passionately committed to a cause”. Several years ago a brother of our house had a nephew who died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. This tragic event inspired us to create one of our most popular annual philanthropies, Powderpuff. This is one of our most popular events in the year, it brings lots of people together to have fun and play football, all the while raising funds to save children from a terrible affliction. This is where Ms. Krieger’s and my philosophies part ways. She seems to be under the impression that if something is fun it must therefore be corrupt or insincere of intention. A philanthropy that helps people by creating a fun event that makes people want to participate does not corrupt the integrity of the charitable cause. It is a smart move, which in the end makes the event more successful by encouraging higher participation, thereby increasing the amount raised for the chosen cause. Having a race or a march to raise awareness, for cancer or AIDS does not make the competitors’ motives any less noble just because they might be having fun.
    Furthermore I would like to remind Ms. Krieger that we are not a charitable organization by nature. It is not in our mandate to throw numerous philanthropies per year. We do that out of the goodness of our hearts, to help our fellow man and give back to our community. If we manage to have fun helping others, I ask where the harm is in that? We are a brotherhood brought together by common interests and beliefs to help and push one another to succeed both in school and life abroad, and who choose to help our community. And I challenge Ms. Krieger to explain why it is a bad idea to open the eyes of our new brothers every semester to their responsibility to help our fellow man, and why getting in the habit of doing so while in college is bad in any way.
    I would like to ask Ms. Krieger what she believes in. I will tell her what the brothers of ZBT and I believe in; Intellectual Awareness, Social Responsibility, Integrity and Brotherly Love. We strive on a daily basis to live our lives according to these principles. And Whether or not close-minded individuals such as Ms. Krieger acknowledge it or not, we will strive to keep making the world a better place, help people in need and have fun doing it. And nothing written by a biased and mediocre journalist will deter us from our mission.
    I would like to remind Ms. Krieger and the Sundial, that simply placing an article in the opinions section does not give the writer or the paper free reign to print anything they want. The obvious disregard for the truth in Ms. Krieger’s article is printed libel and is a perfect example of defamation; a criminal offense. Having the title of opinion at the top of the page does not allow them to take unsubstantiated falsities and present them as fact.
    Ms. Krieger’s blatant spinning of the facts, half truths and flat out lies, is amateur journalism at its worst. And one can’t help but wonder why the Daily Sundial continues to keep journalists as un-professional as Ms. Krieger on staff. It’s sad that a high school history report seems to require more research than a college newspaper article these days. Frankly, Ms. Krieger should have exercised more professionalism in writing the article in the first place and the editing staff should not have allowed such an article to be published. This was an incredibly inflammatory and offensive article; printed in a CSUN paper, deliberately and insensitively defaming the reputations of fellow CSUN students and the organizations in which they choose to participate and should never have been allowed in a school paper. This incredibly inappropriate article perpetuates negative stereotypes and further divides the CSUN community. I am sure that this is not the kind of activity that the Sundial would like to promote. Therefore I am sure that more consideration and detailed editing will be applied to all future articles.
    In conclusion I am personally insulted that someone like Ms. Krieger would take something as positive as charitable work (which only helps people) and try and spin it to make it into a negative in order to push her own opinions about Greek Life. It’s disgraceful that she then attempts to pretend to be presenting an unbiased outsider’s insight into the Greek Community. However, her obvious predetermined disposition undermines any chance that anyone who actually knows anything about these events from taking her seriously as a journalist. Her lack of professionalism makes a joke of her article and the paper she writes for.

  • Publius

    From reading the comments, it is obvious that both facts and falsehoods have been mentioned. Admittedly, I cannot comment on social sororities/fraternities, so I’ll leave the comments to others.

    As a member of a professional fraternity, I participated in rush events that ran counter to the images seen in 80′s movies. Because of our national charter, none of our activities ever involved alcohol or any variation of hazing. Our philanthropic activities did not involve raising money; we donated our expertise in lieu of dollars.

    The reason why professional fraternities do not get much campus coverage – positive or negative – is because we are usually required to recruit from people within our current or future career fields. While it may sound exclusive, elitist, or draconian, the result is that we remain under the radar as we cannot choose new members from at least 90% of the student population.

    To non-Greeks: if your future career field has ties to a professional fraternity/sorority and you are interested in participating in the Greek system, try those first. If they don’t prove to be a good fit for you, then move on to the social fraternities/sororities. And if that doesn’t work, it obviously wasn’t meant to be – and hopefully you were educated in the process.

  • Megan & Briana

    Hey, quick question. Feel free to answer honestly and NOT in your OPINION. How much money has the Daily Sundial raised for charities, or what charitable work has the Sundial done this year?

  • General CSUN Population

    Why generalize an entire community? Do you know how many sororities and fraternities there are – including non-panhellenic/ifc? Use your brain. If you’re interested in Greek-life, talk to someone in every fraternity. If you’re thinking about rushing, do rush week, that’s what it’s there for. If you’re not and you know it isn’t for you, live beside Greeks in harmony, and don’t slander an entire community.

    I’m sure the Greeks who threw away papers were pissed off do-nothings who were ashamed that their apathy was displayed publicly. It’s too bad and I’m sure that the Greeks who actually DO something will pull together some way to prove this article wrong. Much of the facts are incorrect anyway – even the positive ones.

    This xenophobic attitude between Greeks and non-Greeks is perpetuated by the media enough as it is. They really don’t need their representative paper bashing them and giving backhanded compliments.

  • jackie

    Who took that picture? Because those letters are my Family Letters haha.

    This article is bogus, and it’s easy to judge an organization when you don’t know all the facts :]

  • Leah Streb

    I just find it funny how people who know nothing about the greek system are assuming that they are authority figures on it. If the person who wrote this article really did their research they would find that every summer Delta Delta Delta visits st. judes hospital to meet the children which I must mention is not in california. Also, many of the other sororities and fraternities do much more than any of those on campus who just go to class and go home can say. This person who wrote this hurtful article had time to write their little piece, but try to plan a whole philanthropy event like the red dress ball that Alpha Phi plans every year. And for ZBT’s, their last philanthropy event (Penny Mile and Powderpuff) lasted a whole week! This article makes it seem like we don’t go to great lengths for our philanthropies, but they are truly a huge part of who we are as fraternities and sororities. Parties do not take as much planning as things like philanthropy take. And another thing, it is up to each individual on how much they party. I don’t think that anyone here can say that they have NEVER wanted to go have a good time in their life. Just because Greeks have the planning skills to actually pull of good social events people bash us for it. I think that everyone on this bulletin and whoever wrote this article need to first find better sources because this article is based on what someone has heard and not what they have seen. Do I see you raising $15,000 for any philanthropy or doing a philanthropy event for a whole week? I think not.

    • http://www.csunaepi.com Yoni Mann

      AEPi actually visits one of their official charities (Shaare Zedek Medical Center) in Jerusalem, Israel every summer. Who says Greeks don’t visit their charities!

      • Leah Streb

        Exactly! That’s amazing by the way :) I think that more people need to take these things in consideration before they assume that we don’t do enough.

  • Lou

    I am a member of a fraternity, have been for almost three years, and at this point, I feel I have a pretty good grasp on the nature of “Greek” organizations. This article had me asking the question, why do fraternities/sororities exist? What benefit do they provide for members and for the campus and community at-large? While answering this in its entirety will take more words that I am willing to spill in this forum, I will say that I believe the fundamentals of fraternity/sorority existence are member development, campus involvement, and community service; not necessarily in that order.

    In the most recent years of my life, participation in community service has become a more developed personal trait, one that I try to instill in the members of my fraternity. I know for a fact that there are members of fraternities/sororities that are very dedicated to service in the community. I also happen to observe that the very opposite holds; there are those members on who (or is it whom?) the idea of giving unto another entity without the prospect of direct personal gain is completely lost. Here in-lies the dilemma reached in this article: The so-called college Greek society is too large and diverse to make assertions about the whole, that there is a general dispassion for service. The problem also lies in the imbalanced negative image of plentiful parties, hazing, pretentiousness, and the positive image of philanthropy, community service, and academic improvement. If the focus of our organizations changed from “having good times” to being productive, learning and contributing, it would be for the better.

    In the case of gathering support for one group’s charitable cause, I feel there’s needs to be a shift from collecting money to encouraging participation, meaning that the most meaningful act that can be done for a cause is the presence of a body physically working to reach a goal. Giving money is great, however, we as “Greeks” need to provide, and take advantage of opportunities to donate our time and energy. From my years of experience doing community service, being present is much more appreciated than any dollar amount (except maybe when it’s a big *ss number; that’s different :-) Good job APh, AEPi, ZBT; but don’t let it go to your head!)

    P.S. – THAT’S how you write a reply without pouring in toxic emotion :-)

  • Doesn’t Matter

    Bottom line, maybe the article was a little controversial, but I used to be in greek life and found a lot of it like I was back in kindergarden – throwing away papers is like having a temper tantrum.. Greeks if you want to stand above this article – voice your opinion but in a more mature way.
    Everyone has a right for an opinion. I think this article was a little too harsh especially for someone to write who hasn’t been part of greek life and doesn’t know anything about philanthropy.
    Personally, I am not a fan of greek life, for many different reasons. It was not for me, but I also see that it brings out the best in some people. First time freshman that enter Greek life tend to stay in college instead of dropping out. They do a lot more for the community than some people.. so I wouldn’t consider it apathetic… Personally I don’t believe most people join Greek life for philanthropy, but they do help out in the community once they join (maybe not as much as the author would like, but more than most people at CSUN).
    All I have to say, is Greek life brings out the best in some and the worst in others. I’m the latter.. but I dropped so it’s all good!

  • Sam

    So in the end, it is safe to say that this article sucks and goes to show how bias the Sundial is. Thank god these writers/ staff will never amount to anything. Maybe when they stop hating on people that actually do something with their lives they can step out of their stereotypical bubble and open their eyes. After reading this article I realized a lot of things…

    - Jealousy is truly a sickness
    - Vanessa is dumber than the shit that comes out of my ass
    - Any organization that has the capability of raising money for a charity should never have to go this criticism.
    -Paralegals in training at CSUN really have no future
    - Sundial really sucks and isn’t worth the effort of reaching into the free newsstand.
    - All greek organizations bring the ultimate college experience by providing leadership opportunities, along with holding members accountable by other members. Its truly better than a lot of classes at CSUN (especially the journalism class that the Sundial students are taking)
    -Sundial should extend the greeks to provide their opinion and provide a truly balance or opinion.
    -Sundial should be the first to go in budget cuts

    • Doesn’t Matter

      Seriously, one thing that drives me up the wall and always has is that Greeks think that non-greeks are jealous of them. Really?! You need to believe that to feel good? If that is what you need to believe, fine, go right ahead, but quite frankly, MOST people that aren’t greek are not and I repeat NOT jealous of the greeks. The End

    • victoria

      SAM,

      haha please NOBODY is jealous of the Greeks and this “ultimate college experience” do you mean partying? HA!

      • Sam

        No, not by partying, but actually getting leadership experience, networking opportunities, seeing what csun truly has to offer, a chance to work with campus staff. Attending national conferences that expand your networking outside CSUN. Yes, you get to party because you have the opportunity to meet hundreds of great people that are going thru the same experience and we are young and like to have a good time. Not everyone member parties like you may think, as a matter a fact CSUN is one of the best examples of a diverse greek system that breaks stereotypes that you ignorantly talk about. BTW go ahead and research into your next response, because I know I am right.

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