This year’s mandatory sorority and fraternity programming about diversity and sexual assault was thoroughly underwhelming. Just two weeks after recruitment, new members trudged to the Technological Institute for the mandatory Panhellenic Association and Interfraternity Council joint meeting. The three-hour-long event featured discussions of sexual assault and diversity in Greek life, but the less-than-inspirational lectures revealed a sophomoric approach to talking about salient issues within the community. PHA and IFC should engage members in candid, honest and perhaps uncomfortable conversations about race, class and sexuality within Greek life — we can handle it.

Though a difficult topic to tackle, the mandatory meeting discussed sexual assault with a desire for simplicity, rather than precision. At one point, an administrator from Center for Awareness, Response and Education flashed a PowerPoint slide featuring a list of emotions victims of sexual assault might experience: shame, guilt, fear and anger, among others. As she painstakingly recited each word, I was struck by how simplistic the presentation was. To add insult to injury, the majority of students were completely tuned out, looking at their phones or laptops or both. Although certainly rude, this was not surprising. If we want students to participate, the programming itself should be up to par.

I couldn’t imagine how a victim of sexual assault would react to the discussion’s inadequacy. The callous nature of a discussion of such importance was shocking. Students don’t need to be talked down to, and it is vital to make this conversation engaging to PHA and IFC members, as fraternity brothers are more likely than non-members to commit sexual assault, according to the “Journal of Interpersonal Violence.”

The program about race, an issue important as ever when looking around at Northwestern’s overwhelmingly white Greek system, was equally uninspiring. After reading a convoluted definition of intersectionality and evoking a few half-hearted answers to the question, “What does diversity mean to you?”, the discussion leaders failed to provoke substantive conversations about race. The program featured no challenge to the lack of diversity in Greek life, nor any acknowledgement of the way minority students might feel alienated in such a white and historically racist environment.

It is not enough for sororities and fraternities to host a single mandatory (and largely unproductive) program about race and sexuality. It is not enough for sororities to sit satisfied with the creation of diversity and inclusion chairs. And it is not enough for fraternities to host Men Against Rape and Sexual Assault workshops with new members to discuss sexual assault.

Providing a space for complex and productive discussion is vital to fulfilling the promise that is so often repeated during recruitment at NU: “We’re not like Greek life at other schools.” If given the chance, fraternity and sorority members can rise to the challenge of tackling difficult issues. We are capable of, and eager for, meaningful conversations. When developing these mandatory programs, PHA and IFC leaders should strive for nuance, not naivety.

Jessica Schwalb is a Weinberg freshman. She can be contacted at [email protected]. If you would like to respond publicly to this column, send a Letter to the Editor to [email protected]. The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the views of all staff members of The Daily Northwestern.