One thing that stuck out to me, even at the time, was how heavily represented Greek life was in student government. I was involved for two years at Florida International in the mid-2010s, and us non-affiliated folks were quite literally on the other end of a supermajority. That seemed to track for other state schools in Florida as well.
It has always been more of a chicken-or-the-egg question for me. It was undeniable that Greek people "knew ball", as the kids say, about how to make connections and start learning how to operate the levers of power within an institution. That gave them the skills to rise in their pursuits after college. However, I wonder whether that is a benefit that can be purely explained by Greek life, or if it's because those kids already had privilege. I mean that, in the sense that they grew up with professional, connected families, and inherently knew the mechanics of those social connections without necessarily even being aware. (The dirty underbelly of this system, as we find out from time to time, is that those mechanics are pretty efficient at sweeping unsightly things under the rug).
Is it a rite of passage for the offspring of the upper-middle/professional managerial class, where those class skills are refined? I know it was a sometimes-painful learning experience for me through osmosis, especially when you are out of sync socio-economically.
Side note: Perhaps that is why, when asked for my affiliation in student government/affairs, I would say with a straight face that I was in Gamma Delta Iota. That was meant to be a response to the GDI label they seemed to give non-affiliated students in the early to mid-2010s. The response was always a fascinating window into the tone of who I would deal with.
Great piece. I’ve been thinking and writing secret societies and clubs at elite colleges, and they make your point very acutely. When Harvard tried to sanction members of single-gender clubs in 2016, the clubs and several sororities sued, and Harvard dropped the policy in 2020. Institutions that reproduce elite power can defend themselves in court as freedom of association.
A lot of the societies hold their property through alumni trusts and corporations (Skull and Bones’ is the prime example), which keeps them insulated from the universities around them. The result is an associational life endures perpetually, because it’s built on the same legal tools that preserve family fortunes.
[Also, if you want to spin out on what the power mapping looks like at the secret societies, read Leigh Bardugo's fantasy/horror books! They are amazing.]
In the opening weeks of my freshman year, I dated a frat guy. He asked why I didn’t join a sorority. I told him I’d never be able to afford that.
He was perplexed and asked, “How did you get to be so poor?”
Me: “I was born that way.”
One thing that stuck out to me, even at the time, was how heavily represented Greek life was in student government. I was involved for two years at Florida International in the mid-2010s, and us non-affiliated folks were quite literally on the other end of a supermajority. That seemed to track for other state schools in Florida as well.
It has always been more of a chicken-or-the-egg question for me. It was undeniable that Greek people "knew ball", as the kids say, about how to make connections and start learning how to operate the levers of power within an institution. That gave them the skills to rise in their pursuits after college. However, I wonder whether that is a benefit that can be purely explained by Greek life, or if it's because those kids already had privilege. I mean that, in the sense that they grew up with professional, connected families, and inherently knew the mechanics of those social connections without necessarily even being aware. (The dirty underbelly of this system, as we find out from time to time, is that those mechanics are pretty efficient at sweeping unsightly things under the rug).
Is it a rite of passage for the offspring of the upper-middle/professional managerial class, where those class skills are refined? I know it was a sometimes-painful learning experience for me through osmosis, especially when you are out of sync socio-economically.
Side note: Perhaps that is why, when asked for my affiliation in student government/affairs, I would say with a straight face that I was in Gamma Delta Iota. That was meant to be a response to the GDI label they seemed to give non-affiliated students in the early to mid-2010s. The response was always a fascinating window into the tone of who I would deal with.
More Felix content pls
Great piece. I’ve been thinking and writing secret societies and clubs at elite colleges, and they make your point very acutely. When Harvard tried to sanction members of single-gender clubs in 2016, the clubs and several sororities sued, and Harvard dropped the policy in 2020. Institutions that reproduce elite power can defend themselves in court as freedom of association.
A lot of the societies hold their property through alumni trusts and corporations (Skull and Bones’ is the prime example), which keeps them insulated from the universities around them. The result is an associational life endures perpetually, because it’s built on the same legal tools that preserve family fortunes.
[Also, if you want to spin out on what the power mapping looks like at the secret societies, read Leigh Bardugo's fantasy/horror books! They are amazing.]
OMG best dog name ever.