tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893219718076521675.post8643057029935692564..comments2024-03-29T08:48:14.872-04:00Comments on pancocojams: Racist SAE Fraternity Chant Is Said To Be An Old Chant That Is Sung By Other SAE Chapters & By Other FraternitiesAzizi Powellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14963772326145910073noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893219718076521675.post-78542654866385669322015-03-28T06:23:27.521-04:002015-03-28T06:23:27.521-04:00Update March 28, 2015
According to a Talking Point...Update March 28, 2015<br />According to a Talking Points Memo article whose discussion thread link is given below, members of OU learned that racist SAE chant four years ago when they attended a leadership cruise that was sponsored by the national fraternity.<br /><br />Here's a comment from that article's discussion thread <a href="http://forums.talkingpointsmemo.com/t/discussion-frat-members-learned-racist-chant-on-national-cruise/18493/39" rel="nofollow">http://forums.talkingpointsmemo.com/t/discussion-frat-members-learned-racist-chant-on-national-cruise/18493/39</a> in response to the question "How many members of SAE fraternity are Black?" <br /><br />YSKOV<br />"I saw the figure reported somewhere earlier today - nationally, 3% African American, 20% non-white overall. Which is higher than I expected.<br /><br />Interestingly, the founder of the OU chapter in its present incarnation (it had been shut down in the late 80's after a hazing death I think) is Indian-American. His take on this is worth reading every word. <a href="http://www.okcfox.com/story/28326982/jay-vinekars-full-statement-on-sae-video" rel="nofollow">http://www.okcfox.com/story/28326982/jay-vinekars-full-statement-on-sae-video</a><br />But here is a taste:<br />I could say that the actions of a few are impacting the whole. But, let's not kid ourselves. Racism, elitism, hazing, these all seem to be more systemic than localized; and, the culture needs to change, it needs to be overhauled, comprehensibly, and not just swept under the rug....for the few years following 1995, the Oklahoma Kappa chapter of SAE, at the University of Oklahoma, was a solid house, that welcomed men of all races, ethnicities, etc....But, that house of the 90s no longer exists, and apparently has not existed for many years. That being said, I would rather see the whole thing gone than have to ever be associated with bigots!"<br />-snip-<br />While the number of People of Color who are members of that historically White fraternity is relevant to this discussion, what is more relevant is how members of that fraternity view and value their race and view and value the race/ethnicity of People who aren't White. <br /><br />I haven't found the statistics, but I'm sure that the number of White people in historically Black fraternities and sororities isn't high. <br /><br />However, as I mentioned in the above pancocojams post, in my personal experience as a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc and in my (albeit informal) research of Black Greek letter organization chants, step shows, and strolls, I have yet to come across any BLGO chants or routines that are racist or demeaning of any ethnicity or any population other than gays (i.e. a fraternity referring to one or more rival fraternity/fraternities as being gay.) <br /><br />I strongly believe that BGLO should address that homophobia, which is reflective of the anti-gay feelings that are still found among a sizable number of heterosexual African Americans. Azizi Powellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14963772326145910073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893219718076521675.post-19876467505096166482015-03-12T08:57:23.285-04:002015-03-12T08:57:23.285-04:00nancyjones, the writer of a March 12, 2015 dailyko...nancyjones, the writer of a March 12, 2015 dailykos diary entitled "Frat Songs" wrote:<br />"I heard ΣΑΕ brothers chant the racist chant that they're currently and justly being taken down for way back in 1980.[at Georgia Tech]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/03/12/1370339/-Frat-songs" rel="nofollow">http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/03/12/1370339/-Frat-songs</a><br /><br />cheminMD, a commenter to that diary wrote:<br /> …"The chant they they recited, and yes, it was recited, handed down from class to class, not some ad-libbed dittie from the edgy comedian in the group, indicates a pattern of discrimination."<br /><br />Azizi Powellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14963772326145910073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893219718076521675.post-566291804412682202015-03-12T03:40:02.471-04:002015-03-12T03:40:02.471-04:00Here's one more comment from that discussion t...Here's one more comment from that discussion thread:<br />Jonas, March 11, 2015<br />"i like how whenever this stuff gets exposed people try to dig up unrelated incidents to justify their bigotry. this line of thinking, segregation, discrimination, long existed before "the knockout game", "crack", "rap" and all the present day excuses used to justify a mentality and behavior that has carried on for over a century. its comical at this point. you'll have to try harder to excuse the traditional racism that is being continuously exposed day by day."<br />-snip-<br />From the rest of that quote, the "I like how" actually means "I don't like how".<br /><br />That comment may have been sparked by comments in that discussion thread and also by comments made by on television, particularly on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program. Here's an excerpt from a followup article about the comments on that show that blamed rap music for that historically White fraternity's racist song which not only used the n word but also promoted discrimination against Black men and lynching Black men.<br /><br />From <a href="http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/mika-brzezinski-rap-frat-chant" rel="nofollow">http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/mika-brzezinski-rap-frat-chant</a><br /> 'Morning Joe' Host Walks Back Segment Blaming Rap For Frat's Racist Chant<br />ByTracy WalshPublishedMarch 11, 2015, 5:50 PM EDT <br /><br />"MSNBC's Mika Brzezinski engaged in damage control Wednesday afternoon after her fellow panelists on "Morning Joe" ignited an Internet firestorm by blaming rap music for a racist chant by white fraternity members at the University of Oklahoma.<br /><br />In an appearance on the MSNBC show "The Cycle," Brzezinski said the real villains of the story were the frat members who were caught on video chanting the racist slurs. She called the video "disgusting and disturbing." ...<br /><br />She added there was "an important conversation to have" about the use of racial slurs in hip-hop music, but stressed that she was not drawing a "moral equivalency.".<br /><br />Brzezinski, who is white, criticized the rapper Waka Flocka Flame, who is black, on "Morning Joe" earlier in the day for canceling a concert at the university when his own music was "garbage, full of N-words, full of F-bombs."<br /><br />The rapper "shouldn’t be disgusted" with the students, she said. "He should be disgusted with himself."<br /><br />The segment was quickly mocked on Twitter, inspiring the satirical hashtag #rap albums that caused slavery. <br /><br />Click <a href="http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/rap-albums-that-caused-slavery" rel="nofollow">http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/rap-albums-that-caused-slavery</a> for an article about that hashtag.<br />Azizi Powellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14963772326145910073noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5893219718076521675.post-7800214506521518912015-03-12T03:22:01.140-04:002015-03-12T03:22:01.140-04:00Here's another comment from that same Yahoo di...Here's another comment from that same Yahoo discussion thread whose link is given above:<br /><br />Jonas , March 11, 2015<br />"cell phone cameras, exposing the filth America has hidden for decades one video at a time."<br />-snip-<br />It should be emphasized that at least two people on that party bus filled with SAE fraternity members and their female guests secretely recorded the video of that racist song. <br /><br />My thanks to them for taking that action rather than joining in that song and doing nothing.<br /><br /> Azizi Powellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14963772326145910073noreply@blogger.com