The nine members of DU’s Upsilon Gamma chapter of Sigma Lambda Beta (SLB) are bringing light to gender issues within the DU community.
According to the official SLB website, SLB is a historically Latino-based social fraternity that was founded based on cultural understanding and wisdom. The original founders of SLB believed in fairness, opportunity and equality of all men without regard to their race, culture or ethnic background and the Upsilon Gamma chapter at DU is striving to uphold these ideals.
The group hosted a discussion called “Fraternities: Through a Gendered Lens” last Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Anderson Academic Commons. The event was an open discussion that addressed how DU Greek men can be better allies to DU women.
The discussion centered on discussing the existing problems of and possible solutions to the issue of sterotyped gender roles and sexualized interactinos within the DU Greek community. It was attended by a diverse sampling of Greek and non-Greek DU students, including members of Gamma Phi Beta, Delta Zeta, Beta Theta Pi, Alpha Phi and a number of the members of Sigma Lambda Beta.
Senior political science and business major Roman Valencia, president of Sigma Lambda Beta, began the discussion by expressing his hope that the dialogue would help towards “achieving a better, more inclusive DU.”
At first, when presented with the question of what gender issues exist at DU, the room was quiet.
“How can you be an ally if you don’t know how to be one or even where to start?” said Thomas McCarvel, a junior HRTM major from Denver, after a moment of prolonged silence.
This confession opened up the room into a passionate and articulate discussion that spanned from the perpetuity of gender roles within Greek social life to the enabling effects of excessive alcohol and the problem of cementing an identity as an individual within a wider organization.
Hugo Loya, a senior international studies major from Denver, expressed his concern over being associated with the negative stereotype of a fraternity man.
“Many people think of a fraternity man as a hegemonic, masculine man who is predatory and will approach women and have only negative thoughts,” said Loya. “It’s about challenging the notion of what a fraternity man is and working towards that by comporting oneself in a gentlemanly fashion,” said Loya.
The discussion also addressed the role that women play in perpetuating their own gender roles and possible objectification.
“I also think that there is a problem with women supporting other women on campus,” said Mariah Bloom, a non-Greek senior accounting major from Eagan, Minn.
The discussion moved into addressing possible solutions to the problem.
The group came up with a list of solutions such as increased accountability within and between organizations, guided and informative discussions of the issues, and reminding Greek participants about the values they adhere to within a fraternity or sorority. Another suggestion was to volunteer at a women’s shelter to see the detriments of gender violence firsthand.
“To some extent, I do believe it was successful. We had a good discussion, a lot of different organizations [were] represented,” said Valencia of the event. “We’re preaching to the choir, to those who are aware of the issues and trying to remedy them.”
In another effort to realize their ideals of fairness and equality, Sigma Lambda Beta also hosted a screening of “Gun Hill Road” last Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Anderson Academic Commons. This 2011 film is about an ex-con who returns home to the Bronx after three years in prison to discover that his wife is estranged and his teenage son is exploring a sexual transformation. The film explores themes of sexuality, family and gender within the Latino community.
After the film, a short discussion was held, similar to the one on Tuesday. Valencia expressed that this event was in support of homosexual members of SLB, as well as other LGBT members of the DU community.
“In order for us to be better brothers we need to make ourselves aware of the issue,” said Valencia. “The biggest issue we have to understand is that the step to solving any problem is to identify that we have a problem.”
Adam V. Brown, who attended “Fraternities: Through a Gendered Lens,” is participating in the solution by organizing a new group on campus called “DU Men & Masculinities: What it means to be a DU man.” This group will continue the discussion that SLB began through more solidified and continuous discussion and confrontation of these issues. Brown is a Masters student in Higher Education and Student Affairs as well as the Director of Inclusive Excellence with Graduate Student Government.
The brothers of SLB and student groups like DU Men & Masculinities are leaders in a movement to educate the DU community about inclusivity and the existence of discrimination based on gender and sexual preference.
“It’s going to be to our benefit if we recognize that we’re in a system, and give ourselves a fair chance of fighting it,” said Valencia. “We need to understand how our actions impede others. The change starts within the individual, we’re opening up the discussion to give people an avenue to identify that within themselves.”
