ABSTRACT
The shared group identity as members of a specific Black Greek-letter organization (BGLO) showcased in the probate is key to fostering the lifelong bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood characterizing Black fraternities and sororities. Specifically, participants felt that the skills that they learned in BGLOs carried over to impact their self-esteem and self-confidence, leadership and workplace aptitudes, and career choices. In pledging BGLOs, respondents were joining a long history of leadership, service, and racial justice activism. Leadership and service were already often part of respondents' undergraduate experience, but they saw a way to make those commitments more meaningful through their BGLO membership. Each BGLO member has the responsibility to uphold the standards of their organization and give the organization its meaning. Individual BGLO members and BGLOs as a collective entity were instrumental in securing civil rights. Black fraternities and sororities have a long legacy of leadership, social justice activism, and community uplift.
