The men begin to stomp their feet, clap and slap their hands against their bodies ,creating a rhythmic beat. One man leads the rest into a chant.
These men, the men of the Alpha Phi Alpha, Mu Tau Chapter at UNC Charlotte, are stomping the yard, or stepping, as most people know it.
Stepping is a complex performance that blends together African traditions with popular culture. It involves synchronized dramatic movement, singing and chanting. Stepping in a yard show or formal probate is a coming-out for black fraternities and sororities to represent their respective fraternity or sorority and to show off their new members.
It’s also the subject of the recently released film, “Stomp the Yard.”
The film, although a box-office success, has ruffled some feathers among black fraternities across the nation and here at Ohio State.
In an early trailer for the film, Alphas are shown in organizational paraphernalia and colors and referring to themselves while stepping, however, in the final cut of the trailer the same steppers are shown only wearing plain black shirts and no dialogue can be heard as they step. This is the result of a threatened boycott of the film by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.
According to a letter posted on the fraternity’s Web site by Alpha Phi Alpha General President Darryl R. Matthews, Sr., Sony Pictures made a donation to the Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Foundation Project, Inc.
Franklin Davis, a senior in pre-lawand a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Zeta Chapter, did not like the way the studio handled the changes.
“There was almost no mention of Kappa Alpha Psi in the movie while the references to Alpha Phi Alpha abounded,” he said. “The two main fraternities in the movie were obviously based upon the Alphas and the Kappas and to have no mention of the fraternities that they were based upon is a slap in the face.”
Antoine Edmonson, a junior in marketing at the University of Cincinnati and a member and Vice President of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Beta Eta Chapter, said he is upset and concerned about the way black fraternities were portrayed in “Stomp the Yard.”
“One thing that disgusted me about the film was that it never portrayed any of the Greek lettered organizations doing any community service or hosting any educational programs, also as I can only speak for my fraternity, and hopefully the whole NPHC, when I say that we do not recruit or urge membership based on potential step team members. We are all based on service to the community – not auditions for ‘Soul Train’ or ‘Dance 360,'” Edmonson said.
Stepping is important to black fraternities for numerous reasons. Babatunde Aremu, a sophomore in political science and a member of Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, said stepping symbolizes his dedication and pride for his fraternity and respect for the hard work and dedication of the brothers who came before him.
“One of man’s truest forms of self expression is dance or rhythmic movement,” Davis said. “Stepping strengthens those bonds because it allows you that outlet, but within the auspices of the group. The best metaphor I can give is that of a tapestry. While there is only one tapestry, it is made up of many threads, each of which brings something unique to the whole, and without which dynamic of the entire tapestry changes. There are not many things greater than the connection that one feels when successfully being able to connect with other people and express yourself in unified manner, striving for a common goal.”
Edmonson said he believes the outcome of the film will be detrimental to the foundation of black fraternities.
“I anticipate uproar of step shows all over the nation, however, I feel like our audience is going to expect us to be flying from the ceiling, crump dancing and turning on our heads as if we were in Brooklyn in the ’80s,” he said.
Aremu said the representation of black fraternities is unfair and tends to only focus on the negative aspects like hazing or the entertainment value of stepping.
“Far too often, the good things that black fraternities do are neglected,” Aremu said. “It isn’t mentioned enough how many educational and community-service based programs are put on by fraternities, such as the MLK March and Adopt-A-Family for Thanksgiving and Christmas, both put on our chapter.”
“Nor do they mention enough, how black Greeks graduate the most out of the black population and have produced most of the influential black people of the past and present like Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Michael Jordan and Rev. Jesse Jackson to name a few.”
The creation of black fraternities stands on an abundance of history, a history that was overlooked in the film. Alpha Phi Alpha – credited for being the first black fraternity – was founded in 1906 by a small group of black men at Cornell University. Aremu said his fraternity, Iota Phi Theta was founded in the middle of civil rights movement.
“The social change and activism that played a part of the civil rights movement heavily influences our principles,” Aremu said. “We want to have a brotherhood of educated black males who go on to positively impact not only the college campus, but America as a whole for the empowerment of not only black people, but society as a whole.”
With the film already achieving a great amount of success at the box office, will black fraternities be overshadowed by stepping? Hollywood has not taken on the story of black fraternities since Spike Lee’s 1988 “School Daze,” which focused more on the harsh hazing that is associated with black fraternities.
Lance Willoughby, a recent graduate of Howard University and a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Alpha Chapter, was turned off from seeing the film because he felt it would give a false Hollywood perception of black greek life.
“At times I feel that stepping does overshadow the work we do because people who are not greek or who may be interested in becoming greek might assume that stepping is the main agenda of fraternities, which is a huge misconception,” Willoughby said. “The common goal that the black fraternities have is to provide community service and provide scholarship, not stepping.”
Each fraternity has its own messages and goals it wants to achieve. Although these messages might have been lost in the film, Aremu hopes the attention can benefit his fraternity in the long run.
“Stepping is flashy and entertaining, and if it garners interest in (black fraternities), I can’t complain too much. I just wish that people would realize stepping is something we do and not who we are.”
Gerrick Lewis can be reached at [email protected].
