Precendented Research

Sufficient research has been done on BGLOs and the complex features of such organizations. This research is used in the basis of my discussion and analysis. Research about the history of BGLOs can be attributed to scholars such as Ali D. Chambers, who discuss the ways in which BGLOs have strayed from their purpose in her article "The Failure of the Black Greek Letter Organization," as well as, Kevin Foster in his article titled, "Black Greeks and Underground Pledging: Public Debates and Communal Concerns," where he talks about the communal impact of pledging, the debate around hazing and pledging, and the secretiveness of it all. Literature about the history of hazing also has its contributors such as Walter M. Kimbrough in his article titled, "The Membership Intake Movement of Historically Black Greek-letter Organizations." Amongst the most popular and widely used research done on Black Greek life, of which the previous scholars mentioned have referenced in their works, is due to Gregory S. Parks and a book he edited known as Black Greek-letter Organizations in the Twenty-First Century: Our Fight Has Just Begun, as well as his article titled, "Complicit in Their Own Demise?". In the article, he shares an experiment he conducted: a qualitative study using email surveys. These surveys asked questions regarding what was known prior to pledging, what was learned during the pledge process, and what those things meant to the participants.

With that, there is scarce literature on the connection between the reasons hazing still occur and the black identity. However, there are scholars such as Paul Ruffins, who in his article, "The Persistent Madness of Greek Madness," began the conversation about the linkage between hazing tactics and slavery. A blog on ebony magazine, written by Britni Danielle, confirms the connections between hazing tactics and civil right sit-ins. Finally, these allegations are further validated with a more recent source, a DVD dissertation by Khui Land Productions titled Black Greeks, White Masters. In this video the lecturer who was once apart of a BGLO, makes connections between known tactics such as the branding of pledges and branding of slaves. This research and more will contribute to my argument that the culture of hazing occurs because of the black attachment to overcoming oppression, similar oppression that has been performed in black history.

For more information on prior research or a conclusive list of sources, check out the References page.