I went into the dinner just expecting to listen. When it comes to subjects like feminism, I feel that often men speak too much. It is not a place for us to speak. It is a place for us to listen- and to learn. And that’s the attitude I went in with- not to speak.

But, I am a man, and so I of course spoke a lot. We are simple creatures.

In my defense, the feminist woman at the table was speaking on a matter that was something I’ve always been very curious about: greek life.

I’m not a fan of greek life, and I never have been. I view it as incredibly exclusionary, often institutionally racist, dangerous, and most relevant, sexist.

Numerous studies have shown that frat brothers are far more likely to rape, and that sorority girls are far more likely to experience rape. The Guardian says: “These are not anomalies or bad apples: numerous studies have found that men who join fraternities are three times more likely to rape, that women in sororities are 74% more likely to experience rape than other college women, and that one in five women will be sexually assaulted in four years away at school.” There you go. And these claims are strongly supported by studies from different academics everywhere.

Greek life is, at least to me, the antithesis of feminism.

Not only because its an institution that more-or-less condones these types of predatory behaviors, but also because it encourages young women to stick by strict guidelines of binary gender identities.

A sample of the often super-diverse individuals who get accepted into a sorority. This is ZTA (zeta thelma alphid? zebra taco accent? who knows.)

The young woman who was there speaking on feminism was also a sorority girl, and a part of the panhellenic board. And so naturally, I asked her about all of these things. Her argument was along the lines of “I understand where you’re coming from. We’re working on it. I would rather work within the system to make it better than to let it continue the way it is”. I thought that was a respectable answer. But I also think the better option is to end the greek system altogether.