Just like any other responsible Duke student, I read the Women's Initiative report as soon as it was released. And just like many other Duke students, I was intrigued by this notion of "effortless perfection." In the executive summary of the report, a short but fascinating finding is glossed over: "Fraternities and sororities play a prominent role in enforcing social norms." Keohane, Roth, et al., should be commended for their ingenious conclusions!
Who would have thought that a bunch of guys living together and throwing parties to "meet" "smart, accomplished, fit, beautiful and popular" girls would create a debilitating culture of ridiculous expectations? Or better yet, who would have imagined that a bunch of girls parading around for a week in their most glamorous accessories to "find their sisters" might unconsciously reinforce these very same expectations? Way to go, Women's Initiative!
Sarcasm aside, the Women's Initiative made some fantastic progress in illuminating the ills of Duke's social scene for men and women; however, it failed to articulate the study's underlying conclusion vis-à-vis undergraduates: greek life traumatizes a substantial cross-section of the student body.
As much as I criticize fraternity life, I recognize that sororities are unapologetically complicit in the social construction of gender norms at Duke. When I first heard about the sorority rush process freshman year, I wanted to throw up. How could a female student subject herself to such a demeaning screening process that attempts to match sister with sorority on the basis of a few short, superficial conversations?
The real conversations take place without words: Is she wearing the wrong shoes? Is her make-up too sluttish? Is she chubby in the thighs? The women who do not attain "effortless perfection" don't make it into their sorority of choice. They go and cry with their hall mates and wonder if they wore the right skirt.
Whether or not women get into the "right" sorority after this cruel, grueling week, they are still subjected to the dominant form of socialization: the ubiquitous frat party. Lots of hormone-charged men gather in their section, alcohol in hand, waiting for girls in skin-tight jeans and midriffs to meander in from the other frat party around the corner. Of course, we go to a school where no one bats an eye at the publication of "Saturday Night: Untold Stories of Sexual Assault at Duke," while frat boys hold the reigns of power in their space on their terms each and every Saturday night.
The "conspiracy of silence," well-maintained in frat culture and among many independents, might explain why the Women's Center reports over 40 acquaintance rapes every academic year (and dozens more go unreported). And also why the presumably student-perpetrator of the Wannamaker attack last year, which spurred the "Saturday Night" publication, has yet to be prosecuted. So much for la fraternité. Real brotherhood would not objectify the countless women's bodies on parade at parties nor would it lionize men involved in sexual "conquests," some of which may fall within the purview of sexual assault.
Hooking-up with drunken girls (effortlessly perfect or not) in wavering states of consciousness is not a feat to be admired. Fraternities must create a culture of respect for women where sexual predators become social pariahs if they cannot be convicted of sexual assault. Maybe we should stop using nice and neutral terms like "acquaintance rape" and realize that "party rape," a term coined by Professor Charlotte Pierce-Baker, is the norm at Duke. But, no. Fraternities will continue to thrive at Duke as long as the appealing imagery of "brotherhood" and "leadership" publicly clouds the reality of a substantial part of greek life--a reality we all know about but refuse to address.
Unfortunately, little will change as alumni with big bucks lament the possible downsizing of the fraternity system. What can change is the collective conscience of fraternities and sororities. Most frat boys are not party rapists; most sorority girls are not vacuous vessels of sexual gratification.
However, group mentalities dictate the performance of gender and the expectations for greek members to exhibit particular ethics, appearance and behavior. Unfortunately, these expectations apply to all of us, as greek life remains the central model of social organization.
One small, yet challenging, step is for a small group of frat brothers to stand up in section and break the conspiracy of silence, and for a small group of sorority sisters to stand up and speak out against the unobtainable standards of what it means to be a woman. Hopefully, the Women's Initiative's findings have given a small group of students--somewhere--the power to stand up.
Christoper Scoville is a Trinity junior. His column appears every other Thurdsay.
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