Racial Controversies at Fraternities and Sororities

Following are some recent racial controversies at fraternities and sororities across the U.S.:

June 2001: More than 100 Dartmouth College faculty members sign a proposal urging a ban on fraternities and sororities, accusing them of racist and sexist behavior.

April 2001: For the second time in recent months, a black student is seriously injured in a brawl involving a Washington State University fraternity. The university president vows to make changes to make minorities more comfortable on campus.

February 2001: The University of North Texas in Denton suspends a fraternity for five years after members allegedly use racial slurs and wave Confederate flag at a group of mostly black football recruits. Weeks earlier, another chapter of the fraternity, at Southwestern University in Austin, is suspended for four years for violations that include racist conduct.

October 2000: Penn State students protest racist practices that they say include discrimination against blacks by fraternities.

September 2000: The University of Georgia lifts a suspension of a sorority accused of rejecting a potential pledge because she is black. Members of the sorority must undergo sensitivity training.

November 1998: More than 400 Dartmouth students stage a protest against a fraternity-sorority "ghetto party" in which students were encouraged to dress as inner-city blacks.

January 1997: About 30 men take part in a University of Nebraska-Lincoln fraternity initiation that includes the wearing of Civil War uniforms, waving of Confederate flags and a cross-burning. Students and community leaders protest.

August 1995: Members of a University of Arkansas fraternity hurl a chair and racial slurs at a black law professor trying to photograph a statue in front of their house. The statue, painted black, had a "Sambo" name tag. The university later suspends the fraternity's charter for two years.