Once upon a time of anti-Catholic and anti-Semitic sentiments, on a campus far, far away, three men of different faiths came together to create a fraternity based on the principle that all men are created free and equal.
Pi Lambda Phi was founded by three Yale University students in 1895. The chapter at UW-Madison celebrated its 75th anniversary this year.
\It was the first nonsectarian fraternity in the nation,"" said Jule Lennard, a UW-Madison alumnus who graduated with a degree in political science in 1936. ""The creed is strictly about anti-prejudice'race, religion, whatever it may be. It doesn't make any difference. It opposes discrimination of any kind.""
The fraternity is much like any other fraternity on the UW-Madison campus. Men join by rushing at the end of the semester, and if the rushee clicks with members of the house, he receives a bid. The fraternity partakes in a variety of philanthropic events, such as working in soup kitchens and participating in the Langdon Street cleanup. What makes the fraternity unique is its nonsectarian status.
""We take men of all creeds, religions and races,"" said chapter President Brian Parrish. ""That's the main idea of it.""
Parrish said the diverse atmosphere was a draw for many students. The fraternity, which will have around 36 members by the end of the semester, is half Jewish, half Christian.
""I think it's the diversity [that attracts students],"" Parrish said, ""A lot of fraternities are more or less the same types of college students. We have an African American in this pledge class. We go by the person, not by the background. That's why I [joined].""
When Lennard got involved with Pi Lambda Phi, the character of the university was quite different than it is today.
""Fraternities at that time were different when compared to what they are today,"" Lennard said, ""First of all, there were only 12,000 students total [on campus]. Fraternities and sororities were very important to social life.""
Lennard was drawn to join the fraternity because of its mission.
""I was partially drawn in because of the creed,"" Lennard said. ""In the creed, you will see the word freedom used constantly.""
It is with this dedication to freedom and a creed that states ""freedom implies the elimination of prejudice""'that the elimination of prejudice means a better understanding ""'twixt men"" that Pi Lambda Phi runs its Elimination of Prejudice Scholarship Contest. Lennard and Mary Rouse, former UW-Madison dean of students, were instrumental in the scholarship's creation. Any UW-Madison student is eligible to apply. Interested students can go to the Pi Lambda Phi Web site, http://www.sit.wisc.edu/~pilams. The deadline is usually in April. The winner of the $1,000 scholarship is announced at a banquet in late April.
""There's a special guest speaker at the banquet,"" Parrish said. ""We try to get someone who embodies [the elimination] of prejudice.""
Past speakers have included Judy Shepard, the mother of Matthew Shepherd.
""The max we've had apply [for the scholarship] was 30 students,"" Parrish said. ""We think we'll have at least 100 applicants this year.""
Parrish cites more publicity, such as sending applications to students in the dorms and speaking to classes, as the major reason Pi Lambda Phi expects the increase in applicants.
