In light of the negative exposure Greek life organizations have received in the past few weeks, Syracuse University’s fraternities and sororities should work to combat prejudice on campus and improve the relationships among the different Greek life governing councils.

The integrity of Greek life was questioned nationally after the exposure of a racist chant performed by Sigma Alpha Epsilon brothers at the University of Oklahoma. It would be ignorant to assume that the actions of those individuals represent SU students involved in Greek life, who make up roughly 25 percent of the student body, but as addressed by SU’s Interfraternity Council in an email to the student body on March 20, “What happened in Oklahoma is not an anomaly.”

At SU there are 71 Greek-letter organizations, organized by five governing councils: the IFC, the Panhellenic Council, the Multicultural Greek Association, the National Pan-Hellenic Council and the National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations. These councils include fraternities and sororities that are identified as historically male, female, Jewish, black, Latino and Asian, among other designations. While these designations are valuable, members should make sure they are not barriers between communities.

Both IFC President James Ogden and NALFO President Andres Rivera, Jr. said that there is a happy working relationship between the Greek life governing councils at SU, but acknowledged that there is room for improvement.

“There’s definitely opportunities for (the different organizations) to come together and work it out, it just has to come from individual members who want to do that,” said Rivera. Rivera said that while there are interactions and collaborations between the different boards, they aren’t widespread.

In light of the national conversation about diversity in Greek life, the individuals involved in these groups at SU should make conscious efforts to improve the communication between councils. Rather than reaching out to the same organizations the fraternities and sororities regularly socialize with, there should be interactions between all different groups. This change can happen on a small scale, such as invitations to and participation in philanthropies hosted by organizations in differing councils.

These are small steps that can help unify the different councils over time, creating a space for conversation about racism, sexism and other perceived biases. This increased interaction should be a conscious effort among Greek students. It may not solve the broader issue of prejudice, but it’s an opportunity to begin addressing it.