Last week, Keshav Poddar '14 addressed race relations at Dartmouth ("The Ties That Bind," Jan. 19) and claimed that the Greek scene is inclusive of students of different backgrounds. Poddar argues that "membership in Greek organizations is not predicated upon belonging to a specific ethnic group or cultural background" and rather that it is affinity housing that causes social insularity at Dartmouth. While I would agree that Greek organizations continue to increase in racial and ethnic diversity as the years go by, there still exists another type of homogeneity in the predominant social scene at Dartmouth that of socioeconomic class.
It is no secret that being a member of a Greek organization will cost you. While membership dues vary, several houses require members to pay upwards of $400 per term, not including the extra costs for formal, house apparel and "slush funds" for Wednesday night drinking. Adding to this financial burden, some sororities also inflict financial punishments as high as $100 if a member misses important house events. The excessive amount of money required for admission into many of these houses restricts access to the Greek system to those with the ability to pay.
To be fair, not all houses have financial penalties, and many try to make membership more inclusive by offering financial aid opportunities. While this is certainly a step in the right direction, the fact that not all houses in the Greek system have a substantial financial aid program causes wide socioeconomic diversity to exist only in certain houses, not in the Greek system as a whole. While I don't pretend to have a working knowledge of the aid provided in every single fraternity and sorority, I can attest based on my own experience in a sorority as well as conversations with members of other houses that the costs even with the advertised financial aid are still too high for some to pay.
Some might argue that while there are financial limitations on joining a Greek house, Dartmouth does boast an extremely open social scene where students do not necessarily need to be affiliated in order to partake in Greek life. Nevertheless, the financial constraints that prevent full participation in Dartmouth's mainstream social scene cause unfair discrimination against those of lower socioeconomic classes. Dartmouth cannot force national organizations to make membership more open to those from less-privileged backgrounds, so there is little the administration can do to remedy this problem. It is important, however, to at least openly recognize that exclusion based on class exists within the Greek scene.
As Poddar points out, Dartmouth also endorses affinity houses like the Native American House and Cutter-Shabazz Afro-American Society. While I won't deny that these groups manifest social insularity, they do so in a very different way than Greek houses. Although the affinity houses focus on celebrating specific cultures and ethnicities, they do not actively exclude people outside of these cultures from joining them.
The social insularity in these affinity houses is caused by individual decisions not to walk through doors that nevertheless remain open for anyone who wants to enter regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or socioeconomic class. On the other hand, if a member suddenly cannot afford to pay dues one term in a national fraternity or sorority, their membership can be de-activated and their outstanding payment turned over to a repossession agency.
Money may be required to maintain a physical facility, hold events and make alcohol available, but there are many campus organizations that require money to function and that still manage to implement policies that prevent class-based discrimination. If the College is going to continue recognizing the Greek system on campus, it has an obligation to review Greek houses' dues and financial aid policies, offer recommendations for increasing socieconomic inclusivity and provide transparent information about how much socioeconomic diversity exists in the Greek system. While I am glad that the Greek houses at Dartmouth have made strides against racism, we must not let classism another very real form of discrimination go unnoticed.
