GSST100 Creative Project - Sororities by Camille Castaño

3. The Faces of MY Collective

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 04:02:45 UTC

I deeply related to to Hogeland's work "Fear of Feminism", studying why young women have reservations about proclaiming themselves as feminists (Hogeland, 1994). My conservative environment exposed me to many women opposing the feminist movement. Regardless of my doubts, I wanted to find like-minded feminists - fortunately, I met these women. These women recruited me into Gamma Phi Beta in 2022, and represent to me what it means to be a young feminist. They are strong, intelligent, and most importantly vocal. They showed me the importance of women-led organizations, and how conversation within these organizations are meaningful and powerful. Having a safe environment for young women to openly speak about gendered issues has been incredibly beneficial for me, and has instilled the personal confidence I hold so close today.

7. The Fruits of my Labor

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 04:03:28 UTC

The Gamma Phi Beta organization fundraises for the nonprofit Girls on the Run, which is a social run club for young girls where female advisors teach them how to build their confidence and embrace their true selves via long-distance training. I wanted to share this picture of a young girl crossing the finish line at her end of the year 5k, to show how the work of sororities is incredibly valuable. Throughout this course, we have learned about the importance of a gender-supportive environment - a place where you can be your truest self. During this 5k, seeing the faces of these young girls feeling so confident and supported as they ran brought a tear to my eye. I am hopeful that the feminist movement and female collectives continue to improve on the front of intersectionality, to open doors for young women like me and the one pictured, to allow us to grow within a sensitive and nurturing environment.

4. "By Culture and By Merit" - Alpha Kappa Alpha

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 04:06:20 UTC

Thompson's work "Multiracial Feminism: Recasting the Chronology of Second Wave Feminism" touches on the exclusion of multiracial feminism from hegemonic feminism. Despite the narrative, women of color feminists were doing work at the same pace as white feminists, all while having to handle the obstacles put in place by men and racism. These women often formed groups with eachother, separate from white groups (Thompson, 2002). This is consistent with the formation of Alpha Kappa Alpha. In the work "Race and Racism in Fraternity and Sorority Life: A Historical Overview" it is noted that Paula Giddings once wrote, “it was no accident that the first Black fraternity was established at a PWI and the first Black sorority at a coed HBCU”. The first Black sorority AKA was founded in 1908 at the HBCU, Howard University. At this time that they were founded, male fraternities had already been established but women were still not allowed to venture off without a chaperone and were often facing expulsions (Gillon, 2019). Regardless these women persisted and now have more than 1,000 chapters worldwide.

5. "Esse potius quam videri"/To be rather than to seem - Chi Alpha Delta

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 04:06:28 UTC

Thompson also touches on how women of color were often involved on three fronts, one of them being working within white spaces (Thompson, 2002). Chi Alpha Delta is an example of a sorority of color founded at a white institution. They were founded in 1928 at UCLA as the first Asian-American sorority. Collecting within a white institution had its intense challenges. They were denied the ability to buy a house on sorority row at UCLA for three decades due to the racist company that owned the land, and by the time laws were lifted that restricted people of color from owning property, prices were so high they could no longer afford it (Gillon, 2019).

1. It begins with a motive...

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 04:07:35 UTC

Within Bell Hooks' Reading "Feminist Theory: A Radical Agenda", she spoke about a notable quote from Audre Lorde - "the master's tools will never dismantle the master's house" (Hooks, 1989: 36). I connected this to where the founding women were during the time of creating Gamma Phi Beta. These women were just barely allowed to get an education, and were seeking more from these masculinized institutions. The letter reads "The Founders of Gamma Phi Beta were a rather serious minded group of girls. Conditions at that time made them so. -- Many thought women unfitted for the strenuous study of a university course, that they had neither the physique nor the brains for such an undertaking and, of course, we were anxious to prove ourselves the equals of our brothers or any other man". These women understood that these men, the master, will never break down the discriminatory nature of their institutions, the master's house, therefore it is their job to do so.

2. The Faces of the Collective

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 04:09:01 UTC

Gamma Phi Beta was founded as the first self-proclaimed sorority at Syracuse University in 1874. Within this course, we have learned about many feminist figures like Hooks, LeGates, and Kochiyama, and I like to view these women similarly. Though I do not know them individually, this course has taught me the importance of recognizing the women who have contributed to feminist endeavors in the past. Because of these women, I am able to attend a university and explore extracurriculars freely, leading me to meet fellow feminists!

6. Currently...

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 04:13:48 UTC

Thompson states, "we must dig deep to represent the
feminist movement that does justice to an antiracist vision" (Thompson, 2002: 351). This image is my current Gamma Phi Beta chapter here at UCR, which is a very different group than the one pictured in Image 2. I am thankful to say that my chapter actively works against the historical racism of sororities by using education, conversation, and a zero-tolerance policy. As a historically white sorority, it is true for my chapter that we must dig deep to ensure we do justice to our antiracist vision. It is every woman's responsibility within the chapter to be actively antiracist and change the face of the sorority. I am grateful for the women who have put in the work previously, as their work is what welcomed myself into chapter, and the women that continue to do the work.

Works Cited - Photos

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 04:19:26 UTC

Works Cited - Text

ccast211_1 — 2025-03-22 06:32:15 UTC

Gillon, K.E., Beatty, C.C. and Salinas, C., Jr. (2019). Race and Racism in Fraternity and Sorority Life: A Historical Overview. Student Services, 2019: 9-16. https://doi.org/10.1002/ss.20289

Hogeland, Lisa Marie (1994). Fear of Feminism: Why Young Women Get the Willies. Women's voices, feminist visions, 2015: 717-720. https://elearn.ucr.edu/courses/168199/files/17387937/download?download_frd=1

Hooks, Bell (1989). Feminist Theory: A Radical Agenda. Talking Back, 1989: 35-41. https://elearn.ucr.edu/courses/168199/files/17388569/download?download_frd=1

Thompson, B. (2002). Multiracial Feminism: Recasting the Chronology of Second Wave Feminism. Feminist Studies, 28(2), 337–360. https://doi.org/10.2307/3178747