You Are Not A Sorority Girl.

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I have a problem, and it's kind of a big one. My problem stems from media blasts, catty websites, and the portrayals of us running rampant on screen. Because we are easy targets; we are easily degraded. There are endless streams of jokes made about us, horrible nicknames, and misconceived notions about what we actually do. Rather than being seen as contributions to our community, we are viewed negatively. It's a problem that members experience daily, but can often go unresolved because bringing the topic up makes us look hungry for attention. My problem is with the term "sorority girl," and it should be your problem too.

As a sorority woman, I hold myself to a high standard. The second I was given my bid, I felt an overpowering sense that I was now apart of something more than myself. My sorority holds over a hundred years of tradition, service, excellence, and sisterhood. I proudly wear my letters because I believe and value what they represent. The women in my sorority are some of the best women I have been blessed to meet. There is something so powerful about sisterhood and the way in which it brings people together. My sisters are smart, intelligent, and driven women who inspire me daily. They possess far more qualities of young independent women than those of adolescent girls.

Sororities are comprised of collegiate women working to better themselves in academics and in sisterhood. Most, if not all, of my sisters are working their way through school, experiencing adult life on their own, and paving their career paths. They manage academics, a job, and a social life. The juggling act that they somehow so brilliantly manage is admirable. All of these qualities are that of a young woman, or any woman for that matter, working her way through life. So if we are doing all of these things regularly, why are we deemed sorority girls instead of sorority women?

The last time I checked, I am no longer a foolish girl. I don't wear my hair in pig tails, I stopped wearing glitter lipsmackers at the age of 9, and I outgrew my tricycle about 14 years ago. I pay my car insurance, focus on my studies, and work towards paying for my housing. I am not a girl, I am a young woman. And shouldn't we hold ourselves to a higher standard than to degrade ourselves to being called sorority girls? Let's not just stop at the term sorority girls... let's not let ourselves be called girls period. Why let ourselves be cast into a box that we are not members of? We are more than stereotypes, more than foolish girls running around with letters on our shirts, more than what society labels us.

We are women coming together to better our lives and the lives of those around us. We care about philanthropy and service, and while yes, we enjoy our socials and mixers, we know that there is more to being in a sorority than that. While we know what we stand for, outsiders do not. We have to positively represent our letters in our actions, words, and attitudes. Being in a sorority is not a fashion statement, it is a lifestyle. Don't be afraid to correct people. Re-iterate why you are a sorority woman. Because we are not sorority girls. We are sorority women.