Sigma Nu fraternity voted unanimously late last night to separate itself from the Sigma Nu national, President Tom Grey reported. The decision, the culmination of more than two years of investigation and thought, was reached after the majority of members became convinced there was no hope of influencing the national to alter the clauses in the national constitution and by- laws which forbid accepting Negroes or Orientals [ the terms used by the by-laws ] as members, Grey said.
According to the four-part motion, the Beta Chi chapter of Sigma Nu will redesignate itself the Beta Chi fraternity, petition the University to recognize the Beta Chi fraternity as the legal successor organization to the Beta Chi chapter of Sigma Nu, petition the Beta Chi Building Corporation (the group made up of old Stanford Sigma Nus which own the house) to continue in their capacity as trustees of Beta Chi, and finally, to request that the Sigma Nu national withdraw the charter of the Beta Chi chapter.
IN A LETTER sent to all Sigma Nu alumni on November 3, Grey outlined the history of the problem and asked for alumni opinion. Starting with the "en masse" pledge class of 1960, the discriminatory clauses had provoked discussion and caused considerable dissatisfaction among members.
However, the majority thought that the best method of changing the situation was to work from within and to influence the national to revoke the clauses.
Last spring quarter the situation received public attention when Professor of English David Levin, in a letter to the house, refused an invitation to a Sigma Nu reception on the grounds that his belief in fraternity impelled him "to reject invitations from social groups that deny membership to people of certain racial or religious origin."
At that time Grey stated that the group was planning to try to change the clauses at the national convention to be held in the summer at Pittsburgh.
HE ALSO added that it was untrue that the fraternity practiced discrimination; the case was that the house had never been faced with the choice of having to accept or reject a Negro or Oriental. Hajime Ohta, ASSU Foreign Scholar from Japan, was living in the house at the time and was extremely well-regarded.
Through last spring and summer, most members favored a "wait and see" policy, temporarily accepting the national's policy while working to change it. A minority favored immediate disaffiliation. The minority position was strengthened by a national requirement that all actives sign a Statement of Principle, which contained a justification for the fraternity's racial policies.
All active members of Sigma Nu signed the pledge, some only under pressure of house officers. The officers' feeling was that the chapter would not be able to accomplish anything at the national convention if the chapter could be accused of non-compliance with national regulations.
At the convention delegates Thornton Smith and Rick Seifert, working in close cooperation with the Brown University chapter, met with adamant opposition to the proposed changes; a motion to amend membership qualifications to exclude any mention of race was defeated 215-76. A later motion proposed by Stanford to strike out only the by-law excluding Orientals was also defeated by approximately 25 votes less than the first amendment.
THIS FALL, the letter continued, members realized that there was no hope of changing national policy or even moving gradually in this direction and the main argument for remaining with the national collapsed.
In addition to this fundamental disagreement, Grey noted two other relevant factors: first, that it was becoming increasingly difficult to find freshmen who wanted to join a group which discriminated on racial grounds, and second, that the prestige accompanying identification with the national no longer seemed to be a decisive asset.
Stanford University stands committed behind the Sigma Nu position. In a resolution passed in 1957 the Board of Trustees went on record as being opposed to living group discrimination in any form and that it was willing to cooperate with any group which worked to eliminate such discrimination.
In March, 1960, the Stanford chapter of Alpha Tau Omega had its national charter revoked for pledging four Jewish students. At that time President J. E. Wallace Sterling stated that the University would "give the chapter every possible encouragement in its plans to remain active as a local."
"WE ARE proud of the way the Stanford students of the ATO chapter have defended their principles in a trying situation," he added. The University is expected to comment on the Sigma Nu action today.
With the advent of Beta Chi, the number of explicitly discriminatory Stanford fraternities is reduced to one. Kappa Alpha has a national restrictive clause. KA president Paul Obester said last night that "the situation is under study by the national and that the Stanford chapter is working on a plan to alleviate the problem."
One issue at least remains unresolved. While the University owns the land on which the new Beta Chi house stands, the house itself is owned by a group of old Sigma Nu alumni. What reaction this group will have to the decision of the active members remains to be seen.