Editor's Note: This is the second in a three-part series examining the experience of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students in Dartmouth's Greek community.
As many female Dartmouth students use the sorority system as a way to enhance their social life at the College, women in the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community have also turned to Greek organizations as a forum to express themselves in a way they may not be able to elsewhere on campus.
According to students interviewed by The Dartmouth, sororities have made a number of efforts to remain sensitive to their GLBT members.
"In this day and age you have to recognize that in your sorority you're going to have girls who are members of the GLBT community," Abby Reed '08, former president of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, said. "Like within meetings, you have to remember that there are not necessarily all heterosexuals in the room. "
In Epsilon Kappa Theta sorority, issues of hetero-normativeness are mitigated through the adoption of genderless words, like "Spanish," which members use to refer to romantic partners, according to Sarah '08, a queer member of Theta and former executive officer of Gender, Sexuality, XYZ, the organization formerly known as the Gay Straight Alliance. Sarah wished to withhold her last name to maintain privacy.
"My 'Spanish' -- there's an ambiguity in it -- Todd or Tanya," Sarah said.
Theta is "always improving" its efforts to make GLBT students feel comfortable, Sarah said, citing the sorority's recent discussion about offering membership to a transgender student.
"Theta tries so hard," Sarah said. "Every blitz for formal, they don't assume this sexuality thing or even gender so much...What if a sister were trans? They're so supportive, its awesome."
Bisexual student Maria Maldonado '08, one of the five members of Sigma Lambda Upsilon sorority, said she has not experienced outright homophobia within the Greek system but acknowledged she has encountered "ignorant comments." Maldonado said she feels pressure to conform to feminine stereotypes of behavior and sexuality typically associated with women in sororities. Her bisexuality allows her to assimilate to both heterosexual and lesbian communities, she said, which may be a reason she felt comfortable coming out to her sisterhood.
"I'm bi, so it's kind of like I still fit into them," she said, referring to heterosexual students in sororities. "It's not like I'm completely one extreme... If I presented myself more as 'butch' or not as feminine or androgynous, I feel like I might get looked at a little differently."
Maldonado said others' perception of her sexuality at times influences her actions. For example, she feels uneasy inviting a female friend to a social gathering because other students might assume the girl is her partner.
Other students noted that sororities' 'tails events, which are almost exclusively held as a closed event between a sorority and a fraternity, reflects an assumption that students are heterosexual. Sarah noted Theta's tendency to socialize principally with fraternities, and said she believes that most members of Theta assume that the majority of the organization's membership is heterosexual.
Overall, however, students noted a sense of solidarity among heterosexual and GLBT sorority members, which Reed said may be a heightened by gender tension that exists outside of the sorority system.
"With Dartmouth being male-dominated or fraternity-dominated, I feel like regardless of whether you're gay or straight, you have some sort of sexuality crisis here," Reed said. "That commonality we have as women at Dartmouth -- it helps us to have respect for each other on that level."
Sarah, who transferred from all-female Wellesley College her sophomore fall, originally thought she would feel most comfortable in a coed organization, but said the all-female community Theta provides allows her to discuss femininity and its role in students' lives. At Dartmouth, women must "rely on their gender and deny it at the same time," she said.
Several organizations did not wish to be interviewed by The Dartmouth. Alpha Xi Delta and Alpha Phi sororities declined to comment. Alpha Phi, Delta Delta Delta, Kappa Delta Epsilon and Sigma Delta sororities did not respond to The Dartmouth's several attempts to contact them.
Eliza Yellow-Bird '09, a member of Alpha Pi Omega sorority said in a statement that her organization and its members "do not discriminate or judge membership based on sexuality or sexual orientation."
