At a panel discussion last night, members and supporters of Kappa Kappa Kappa fraternity defended the house's recent decision to change its name, which angered some students because of the name's association with the Ku Klux Klan.
The panel discussion, titled 'What's in a name?" was sponsored by Palaeopitus, a group of senior leaders who advise the College President and the Dean of the College. About 40 students attended the discussion.
Two weeks ago, Tri-Kap fraternity voted unanimously to change its name. The house had been named Kappa Kappa Kappa for 150 years, but changed its name to Kappa Chi Kappa in 1992 to avoid the negative connotations surrounding the initials "KKK," which are commonly associated with the Klan.
Tri-Kap President and panelist Andrew Koh '96 emphasized that the brothers have made "constant efforts to make [the name change] as smooth as possible. We're not calling ourselves 'KKK.' We're Tri-Kaps."
But other panelists said the house can not escape the connection to the white supremacist organization.
"Regardless of what the reality is, it is still a constant reminder to me," said panelist Shakari Cameron '96, the former vice president of the Afro-American Society. "I see Kappa Kappa Kappa, but I still see KKK."
Koh said the fraternity has taken extreme caution not to offend people by not wearing sweatshirts and hats emblazoned with its letters and by not hanging the letters "KKK" above its door.
"We've made a point of calling ourselves Tri-Kaps," Koh said. "It is inconsiderate of members of the Dartmouth community to call us 'KKK.' "
But Student Assembly President Jim Rich '96, another panelist, pointed out that the letters "KKK" inevitably will be associated with the fraternity, possibly on campus maps.
Rich said if he were a black student looking to apply to Dartmouth he would be "very offended."
The other panelists were English Professor Martin Favor and Coed Fraternity Sorority Council President Matt Raben '96. The panel was moderated by Associate Director of Equal Opportunity Ozzie Harris.
AAm Vice President Thomas Fisher '96 said he thinks Tri-Kap's efforts to not have the letters "KKK" appear on campus will be futile.
"Even if just on a reserve corridor table [in Baker library], the letters 'KKK' will be found somewhere," he said.
John Brennan '94, a member of the house who was on campus when it changed its name to Kappa Chi, noted that "these are Greek letters, anyway. They are Kappas, not Ks."
Brennan echoed Koh's opening remarks and said the change to Kappa Chi cut the fraternity off from history and its alumni.
John Strayer '96 said people need to deal with labels and should recognize the difficulty of overcoming them.
"It is naive for anyone to say this is our label, this is who we are," he said.
Brandon del Pozo '96, one of two Tri-Kap members present at the discussion besides Koh, said the fraternity was not being true to itself when it changed its name to Kappa Chi.
"For our intents and purposes, the name never really changed," he said.
Del Pozo also said Tri-Kap had to find a reasonable compromise between "us being true to ourselves and maintaining respect in the Dartmouth community."
Some audience members said they thought the fraternity should have discussed its decision with members of the Dartmouth community before making it.
Koh said the house decided not to discuss its decision with other groups first because it "didn't want to be defensive in its announcement. Approaching others is like admitting guilt."
"We thought that if we spoke logically, we didn't feel people would be offended," he said.
Some audience members said they agreed with Koh.
"If they are making the effort to call themselves Tri-Kap, I don't see the issue," Ron Murali '99 said.
But Cameron said groups need to recognize the power of naming.
"When you rename yourselves, you adopt a symbol," she said. "When you adopt a symbol you have to be sensitive to the perceptions of that symbol."
Cameron also said by calling themselves Tri-Kaps, members of the fraternity are "sort of denying that the negative connotations exist."
Raben said when Tri-Kap members "choose what they call themselves, they choose to live with" the stigma that may be associated with it.
The discussion ended after Koh said, "I feel that for anyone to walk out of here after hearing the arguments on all sides to label us the 'Klan House' would be inconsiderate on your part."
