February 27, 7957-—Page 5'
Opinions
Freshmen feelings mixed on black Greeks
By Taundra Woodard
News Editor
For years students have taken refuge
on the two stone walls near the Pit on the
University campus. With backpacks
slung over their shoulders, students
socialize, check-out passers-by, and
generally stand around to be seen.
Although a diverse group of students
hang-out at the Undergraduate Library,
the members of the greek organizations
are among the most visible.
Splashes of red and white, purple
and gold, black and gold, pink and green
and blue and white cluster together in
small groups.
Of these students, freshmen tend to
be the more impressed or turned off by
greek organizations than the
upperclassmen.
Many of the freshmen interviewed
for this series had been exposed to cer
tain aspects of the fraternities and
sororities before arriving at college. By
having some knowledge of the way things
worked, many already had preconceiv
ed ideas about what to expect from the
greek organizations.
This held true for one freshman
biology major who preferred to remain
anonymous. He came to UNC with only
one thought in his head — becoming a
member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity
Inc.
But after talking with members of
other fraternities, he realized that getting
an education was his primary reason for
coming to college. He said that pledging
was not a major priority in his life at the
present moment.
James Taylor, a freshman from
Fayetteville, said he feels that fraternities
are a status symbol that enables one to
become more self-confident.
Taylor also said that he thinks that
fraternities go out of their way to make
freshmen feel secure.
However, not all freshmen inter
viewed felt that positive about the greek
organizations.
A freshman public policy major is
adamant in her assumption that the
sororities are cliquish, or associate with
those only in that particular group. She
said that she feels that they segregate
themselves and isolate the freshmen
females who look to them for guidance.
Her first impression was that the
greeks did not really make a very strong
impact on the campus life of the Univer
sity. But she said she eventually realized
that they do provide cultural programs.
Joel Winful, a freshman political
science major, said that he thinks the
greeks are a unifying force in the black
community. During his senior year in
high school, he participated in the Kap
pa Alpha Psi Beautillion Millitaire.
He said he was exposed to some of
the finer points of greek life, such as
brotherhood, the respect they receive on
campus, and the achievements of famous
greeks.
Since coming to UNC, Winful has
been exposed to other fraternities and
said he realizes that there is a sacred bond
between fraternity brothers.
He said he was surprised that frater
nities were as active on a majority-white
campus, as they are at predominantly
black universities such as Howard
University and North Carolina
Agricultural and Technical State
University.
“Fraternities provide incentive, set
a good example and are always in the
limelight,” he said.
All of the students interviewed agree
that the greeks help the community by
performing service projects and pro
viding cultural entertainment.
Most also agreed that being greek is
a status symbol that calls for extreme
secrecy and sacred rituals.
The freshmen males and females
also agreed that fraternities are by far
more friendly than sororities.
This is the first in a series of articles
that are looking at the greek organizations
and their perspective roles on campus.
Throughout the running of this series.
The Ink invites readers’ comments and
inputs on this subject.
-t-Freshman Perspective
-I-Greek Perspective
-t-Non-Greek Perspective
m
Men Can Cry
By Chris Allen
This column is mainly for men. It’s
not about football, or beer, or women.
Rather it's about something very unmacho
— the showing of emotion, in particular,
crying.
Now it’s very possible that a lot of
you guys out there are saying, “Crying,
he’s writing about that? What a whimp!
Possibly true, but I’ll go regardless.
Let’s examine the American male: in
telligent (sometimes), macho (most of the
time), humorous (almost all of the time)
and totally incapable, for most of us at
least, of any emotional display. Incapable,
that’s not quite the right word, let s say
conditioned to hide these emotions.
At this point let me clarify something.
I’m not only addressing the men; I realize
that there are many women who are also
reluctant to display emotions. I m just
focussing on men because society seems
to be more willing to accept a woman cry
ing than a man.
Men do get hurt, it’s true. I’m a man,
I played football in high school, drink
beer, and have had relationships with
too
women. I have done all of these macho
things that seem to characterize a man, (as
to whether they really do characterize a
man is up for grabs) and I’ve been hurt.
Frustration, losing a loved one, breaking
up with a girlfriend, being afraid of the
unknown (ask any senior if they’ve felt
that), we’ve all had these, or similar in
cidents to happen to us, and yes, they hurt
men. Yet, most of us have been taught not
to show that hurt.
“Keep a stiff upper lip; BE A
MAN.”
I was at the funeral of a friend who
was very close to me, where I acted as
a pallbearer. After the casket was placed
in the ground, I knew I couldn’t hold back
the tears and they came. No one knew,
it was a rainy day and the tears mixed with
the water running down my face.
There it is, I'll just keep my tears,
heartbreaks, loneliness, sadness, frustra
tion. and all the feelings we’re subject to
and that aren’t proper to display in public,
inside of me, packed up, carrying them
with me for a time.
And I’ll save my tears for the rain.
urNL: Continued from
ship, if you will go to Elizabeth City,”
he said.
Spangler said criteria for the scholar
ship valued around $3000 are: a student
must be in the upper half of the class, live
in one of the counties surrounding
Elizabeth City State, maintain a specified
grade point average each succeeding year
and be willing to work eight hours for the
university or community without pay.
Although the Scholastic Aptitude
Test (SAT) would not be a factor in selec
tion, it, along with special testing each
year, will measure a student’s progress,
Spangler said.
“This area is a deprived economic
area, so the people haven’t had the pro
per chance to have a college education,”
Spangler said. “I predict it will be a tur
ning point in that particular university.”
He said the Board of Governors
plans to ask the General Assembly for
funds to finance the program and some
money would come from other areas.
“I think the General Assembly will
strengthen the University in that area of
the state,” he added.
Although this program affects one of
the 16 state universities, Spangler said the
page 1
fight to keep college costs down is
continuing.
“In the recommendation the Board
of Governors has for the General
Assembly, there is not a tuition in
crease,” he said.
Because of more financial aid cuts,
Spangler said students are being told that
they must borrow more money to pay for
their college education.
“If a student borrows a lot of money
to attend a university, that student will
not go into teaching or public service jobs
where the pay is low because they don't
generate enough money to pay back the
loans,” he said.
To have standards that will make a
student’s diploma mean something is one
of the goals Spangler said that is impor
tant to him.
“These standards that do not come
down, but increase when you can effec
tively increase them are cutting out black
students or people who couldn’t make
those standards,” he said.
“What you're trying to do is raise
the standard as people themselves raise
up to meet them,” he said. “Being a part
of that is pretty exciting.”