Omicron
Chapter
Omicron
Chapter
Always Alpha Phi
Omicron Chapter of Alpha Phi
P.O. Box 1001
Columbia, MO 65205-1001
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ZIP CODE 66044
PERMIT #570
ATTENTION: This newsletter is intended for alumnae, undergraduates, and parents.
If your daughter has graduated, please send us her new address to update our records. Thank you.
The Alabama Chapter of Alpha Phi was recently
forced to pull all of their social media sites after
harsh public backlash and outcry over their
2015 recruitment video. . . . The worst comments
came from blog writer A.L. Bailey in the form
of degrading words such as "bimbos," "dumb
blondes," and "Stepford Wives."
Ms. Bailey,
You don't know me, but I think you think you
do.
You recently wrote a guest column titled "Bama
sorority video worse for women than Donald
Trump." In it, you criticized the women of
Alpha Phi at the University of Alabama. . . . You
wrote that the women were poster children for
detrimental stereotypes and clichés. You wrote
that the women were not the type of women you
wanted your children or your children's role
models to be.
I am also an Alpha Phi, from the University of
Missouri. I am neither blonde, nor tall, nor do
I believe that I give off the impression of being
particularly "flouncy." But I have, on occasion,
blown glitter off my hand in my sorority house.
. . . And I have most definitely laughed, cried,
and enjoyed life with my sisters.
But I did more than just that; during my time as an
active member of Alpha Phi, I was also a member
of four other on-campus organizations.… And as
a member of Alpha Phi, my sisters and I held
a "flouncy," "hyper-feminine," "hair-flipping,"
philanthropy poker tournament every year to
raise money for cardiac care research.
And now, Ms. Bailey, I attend the University of
Notre Dame Law School as a second-year law
student. . . . When I finally started at Notre Dame,
[my sisters] called and talked to me when I was
alone, scared, sad, and overwhelmed.
Ms. Bailey, how could you ever find this out
about me in the span of a three-minute video?
Not everything you said was wrong. As a
minority member of my sorority, yes, sometimes
I felt judged, underappreciated, and shafted
because I didn't fit the sorority stereotype. Yes,
recruitment…is largely predicated on how you
look. I advocated against certain recruitment
policies while I was in school, and my senior year
myself and other friends boycotted recruitment.
But I do not renounce the system because of its
flaws, because the system made me who I am and
brought me home.
To criticize the video is one thing, Ms. Bailey.
. . . You could have just criticized the video, you
could have called it ineffective, ostentatious, or
false advertising.
Except you took it one step further. . . . You made
assumptions about women who are someone's
daughter, someone's friend, and someone's
sister.
I ask you to realize that while you may disagree
with the video, and who the women are
represented to be in the video, your words are
hurtful. . . . Who the women are in the 10-15
seconds each of them are featured in a three-
minute video doesn't say anything about who
they are as individuals. You may indeed want
one of them as a role model for your daughters. I
certainly want my sisters as mine.
Claudia Tran '10
To read Claudia's full post, visit
https://justclauds.wordpress.com.
An Open Letter
to A.L. Bailey
Stay Connected
to Omicron
Omicron Chapter: http://omicron.alphaphi.org
Alpha Phi International: www.AlphaPhi.org
Omicron Chapter: alphaphi.mizzou@gmail.com
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https://www.facebook.com/MizzouAPhi
http://instagram.com/mizzoualphaphi
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https://twitter.com/MizzouAlphaPhi
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http://mizzoualphaphi.tumblr.com/
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http://mizzouaphi.blogspot.com/
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