Pledged: #5

One of the most startling things the book talks about is the racism in mostly Southern sororities, mainly using the University of Alabama as an example. At that school in particular there is segregation going on in the 21st century and although it is illegal nothing is being done about it. The white girls rush in the fall and black girls in the winter. A black girl who was raised in a white area her whole life and whose father was the largest black land owner in the United States wanted to rush during the fall. She did not get a bid from any of the sororities her freshman year. There was nothing wrong with her. She was pretty, nice and clearly had the money to pay her dues but the color of her skin made her and unacceptable candidate. The next year she decided that sometimes it happens to girls and refused to admit that she was not accepted back because the color of her skin since white people had always accepted her in the past. After all it was the 21st century and segregation had ended years ago. But during her second time rushing in the fall she again did not get a bid from any sorority. That spoke to me. A lot of the stories in the book are from Southern schools and I wish she included more about schools from the North and other areas because I think it puts a strong bias on the book. Although I'm sure at every school there are sororities considered white, black and Jewish but the fact that the discrimination is so strong and true is sad for this day and age.

Pledged: #4

The process of finding a sorority is was amazes me so much. You think that people would want to be in a sorority that they want and that wants them in return for who they are. The things some people go through to get into one is amazing. They change who they are and put up a facade to try and get a bid from the best sorority possible. I think it is sad people try to make themselves a new person just to be accepted for who they are not. Some girls get counselors to train them to be the best rushee possible. With this can include; gets a new wardrobe, picking up new activities to make your resume look the best it can, meeting new people that can write recommendations for you and more. If I was in these girls positions, which I soon will be, I am not going to do anything to change who I am. If a sorority does not want me then I don't want them. I would never want to be part of a group that doesn't care to like me for myself. It is sad that at such a vulnerable time in girls life that they are forced to change who they are and lose their individuality to fit into a mold. You can lose so much creativity and individuality by making people all be the same. Unfortunately, from the way this book makes it sound, it will never be a reality that a sorority accepts differences and appreciates them so that everyone can learn and become better people.

Pledged: #3

Girls are clique and always will be. They are more prone to being in close nit groups. But in general people form groups based upon things they have in college. Being friends with people you have things in common with is what makes an instant bond and and a good support system. The ideas of sororities seem better in theory, girls living in a house together so they can help support and encourage each other to maintain good grades etc, but the problem with sororities is how they actually play out when the cattiness and exclusivity develops. There are cliques within a larger clique. And in certain places, these cliques dictate how people will view you for the rest of your life. Alexandra Robbins talks about this a lot, people can invest everything in a sorority and the name they have. I think that people hold on to their sorority so much and judge others by it because when you are out of college and high school there is no way to be superior and more popular then others and one of the only ways they can accomplisish that is by judging people by their sorority affiliation

Pledged: #2

The book follows girls at a school in the South which I think gives a different outlook than sororities in the North or other parts of the country. Since the book keeps the school the girls are from a secret I looked online to try and find out which school it was and the majority of people said it was SMU based on certain traditions and description of scenery and other things. I lived in Dallas for 7 years which is just a few miles from the SMU campus and a lot of the things sounded very characteristic of the area. Most of the kids from Dallas dont like leaving Texas, let alone the South, and if they don't get in to University of Texas their parents make them go to SMU to maintain their social life because their sorority predicts their standing for the rest of their life. The author mentioned that this happens with a lot of Southern schools. I think that the book finds the most drastic cases of sororities and talks about those only to show how much sororities can impose on everyday life.

Pledged: #1

I am reading the book Pledged by Alexandra Robbins. It follows 4 girls in a sorority and the things that happen to them. I wanted to read this book because I am thinking about joining a sorority next year and since I don't know much about them this is an interesting book to read. It talks about rape and how girls are mistreated a lot and told to keep quite to benefit the sorority. It puts a lot of emphasis on being "sisters" and part of a family but it seems like there is a lot of cattiness and drama that goes on. There are upsides to being in a sorority because you automatically have friends and a social life with little effort but i think that sometimes the book focuses on all the bad parts about being in a sorority. Since the author, Alexandra Robbins, was never in a sorority sometimes I feel like she takes a negative point to being in one and focuses on all the bad that can come out of it.

Marketplace of Ideas: Source #8

An article from hyperallergic.com, a website dedicated to art discussions posted an article about Ai WeiWei's situation and an update on the petition to free him. Change.org has started a petition to persuade the government to release Ai WeiWei. The petition is being backed by prominent people in the art world such as the Guggenheims and others. Recently the petition reached 100,000 signatures. But also with that milestone came attacks. For a few hours the petition was accessible to the public. They determined that these attacks came from within China. It is unsure whether it is a result from hackers involved with the government of other groups who support the government. Either way it is unfortunate that the government has the want and need to take thing like this down that protect their citizen’s freedoms. There have been sit-ins at Chinese embassies across the world in support for Ai WeiWei and other forms of support for his cause. It is amazing that peoplea re speaking up against human rights in China and taking a stand to let the government know that it is not okay what they are doing.

Marketplace of Ideas: Source #7

I read an article from the LA Times about Chinas increasing violations of human rights laws. Experts say that recently this has been the most serious crackdown from Chinese government since Tiananmen Square in 1989. In China most of the freedoms that were gained by citizens have started to be taken away again and the government is falling back to their past. Not only Ai WeiWei is talked about but other writers, artists, lawyers, teachers etc., are all being targeted and arrested for voicing their opinions. These people just disappear. With no warning or word they are kidnapped by their own government. When they ask for people to testify in court, like the wife of Liu Xia a Nobel Peace Prize winner who is not imprisoned, they refuse because they are fearful of their government. When the United States does speak up against the issue they don’t have much persuasion over human rights issues in China. In the coming months there is supposed to be talks with China in Washington and Joe Biden is going to visit China in July.

Marketplace of Ideas: Source #6

I read an article from NPR that was also on the radio. It was published May 1^st. Tomorrow May 3^rd marks the 1 month anniversary of Ai WeiWei being taken into custody by the Chinese government. No one has heard from him since he was taken and the government hasn’t released any information as to his whereabouts. Today, May 2^nd, Ai WeiWei was supposed to be in New York to unveil his newest piece which is bronze heads of the Chinese zodiac. He was not there but it was still revealed to the world despite his unknown whereabouts. The story talks about his blog and how he published at least 5 posts a day and hundreds of pictures. It focused a lot on Ai WeiWei’s views of how Chinese culture is being destroyed and pushed aside and the beauty of the past is being thrown away and ignored. As his commentary on those views he took pictures of an expensive Chinese dynasty vase being dropped and shattered into pieces. Ai WeiWei is an activist and that is what makes his art work powerful. His releasing of the names of earthquake victims was not necessary beautiful art but the message behind it is what was groundbreaking as a piece of art work. Ai WeiWei knows he can get away with more than the average citizen which is what makes him want to fight harder because he knows he has to speak up more for all the voices that are silenced by the communist government of China.