A sorority at Southern Connecticut State University was suspended on Tuesday when a group of students was captured on video mocking some of the rituals of a Black sorority, News 8 reports.
In a statement on Twitter, the university said it discovered over the weekend that a video filmed by the Omega Zeta Pi sorority mocking the signs and strolls of Zeta Phi Beta on social media.
"University leaders have since met extensively with members of both sororities as well as campus student groups to develop concrete action steps that confront this issue head-on, hold individuals and organizations accountable for their actions, and identify educational and outreach opportunities that promote both knowledge and inclusion,” the statement read.
"Effective immediately, the Omega Zeta Pi sorority has been suspended pending a full investigation by an independent party,” the statement continued.
SCSU President Joe Bertolino also released a statement on Twitter addressing the school’s decision to suspend the sorority.
“As I stated on Sunday, I have the greatest respect for this sorority’s heritage and traditions,” Bertolino wrote in the statement. “As such, I am deeply concerned about the pain that this incident has caused to their membership and that of other Multicultural Greek Organizations, as well as individuals of color across our campus community.”
Bertolino added that the university will be “implementing cultural education and anti-racism training for all incoming Greek life members and instituting a Multicultural Greek Council.”
TikToker Kahlil Greene, shared the video in a TikTok explaining the significance of the rituals for sororities, captioning the video “obsessed with #blackculture one day and disrespecting it the next.”
“For anyone who doesn't know, what those white women were mocking is called a stroll, which is a group performance routine created by members of the Divine Nine to represent their respective organization,” Greene said. “They were also mocking signs and calls, which serve a similar purpose,” he added
Greene pointed out that Black sororities would never mimic another group's strolls or signs.
"If an org started strolling at an event or a party, you immediately clear the way for them,' he continued. "No questions."Â Â
Founded in 1920 at Howard University in 1920, Zeta Phi Beta is one of nine historically Black fraternities and sororities that make up the Divine Nine.Â
