For The Sake of Beauty

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 Normally you hear sorority disaster stories about underage drinking, parties that get out of control, or maybe some mean girl circling another new girls fat. Have you ever heard of a sorority that requires their members to tan? If not, keep reading.

For the record, I enjoyed my time in sorority. It was not only a great learning experience, it was also a great bonding experience. I met amazing women that I would not have been introduced to otherwise. I can also say that no part of my sorority experience was harmful to my health. In fact, I would argue it was the opposite. Still, years later, I am in touch with many of the sisters. They have gone out of their way to support me in my fight against melanoma.

That being said, I recently heard a rumor (from reliable sources, of course) that two of the sororities at the college where I graced my presence just two years ago requires their members to have a minimum of 120 tanning minutes per week. What does that mean? Six days out of the week these members are heading down to the local tanning salons to tan for the maximum amount of time: twenty minutes. When telling how their sorority is required to tan, they questioned why they never saw any of the Alpha Sigma Tau members. My opinion as to why we weren't at the tanning salon for required tanning hours: although appearance is important--and I mean this in terms of being clean and healthy--it is not everything. We focused our time on scheduling events (besides just parties), we spent time in the library actually studying, and we volunteered when needed. (I tanned some during my sorority time because I wanted to, not because anyone required me to do so.)

These same members are required to spend a certain amount of time at the gym each week. I could argue that this is ridiculous since the sorority should be based on more things than just looks; however, I won't. We all know the truth. And plus, going to the gym a few times a week is good for your health (not that I was ever forced to do so) it is not something that leads to cancer.

When I first learned this information, I was speechless. I knew that these sororities based a lot on the appearances of the members. I just had no idea how far they would go to make sure their girls looked "beautiful." While sending these members to the tanning salon, why don't they send them to the local mini mart to pick up some smokes, too. Smoking leads to lung cancer. Tanning leads to melanoma. Will it take one of their members being diagnosed with melanoma for them to learn how irresponsible they are being? 

Then I started thinking about the type of women that agree to this rule. It is fascinating--and terrifying--to know that hundreds of women AGREE to go to the tanning bed each week because the sorority that they pay to be a part of thinks that being tan leads to being beautiful. I, for the life of me, cannot imagine being a part of an organization that puts that much emphasis on how I look. 

Do I write to the Greek Life of my former college and explain why I am disgusted with this? Do I write to their national headquarters? Will it be ignored? Is it worth the effort that I will put into the letter (pictures and all, of course)? Do I let it be and wait for one of their members to be diagnosed with melanoma? Maybe I should give them the benefit of the doubt that they are unaware that exposure to UV light raises their chances of developing melanoma by 75%. That's a huge risk. 75%!!!

Hearing all of this would usually makes me angry. It would cause me to drive down to good ol' Radford and do some butt kicking. Now, it just makes me sad and disappointed. It is time to kick melanoma awareness into full gear. Otherwise, there may be a lot more "Sisters" experiencing the hell that I have been going through. We will then bond not only by our sorority ties but by the black beast, melanoma.

C'mon, sorority girls, break this trend. Pale skin is in....

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