Jews: the group almost always used as a scapegoat throughout history. From being used as slaves in ancient Egypt to prevent a minority uprising, to a campaign of total extermination because they were ‘hell bent on destroying the Aryan race in Europe’, the Jewish people have had a rough existence. This rough life through the centuries can be attributed to any variety of factors, based on the time being examined. However, there is a persistent thread that connects every outburst of oppression or violence against the Jewish people: anti-semitism.
Because of anti-semitism, the Jewish people have grown to develop a kind of ‘siege-mentality’ wherever they reside, myself included. This has been a formative factor in the lifestyle of Jews the world…show more content… Abbreviated AEPi, it is The Jewish Fraternity, and an organization I am proud to say I am a part of. But what do I mean by the “The”? Well, the big three Jewish fraternities in America were Alpha Epsilon Pi, Zeta Beta Tau (founded 1898), and Sigma Alpha Mu (founded 1909) (Zeta);(Sigma). All three were founded as Jewish fraternities, who therefore only admitted Jews to their ranks. However, as the 20th century progressed, America was rocked by war after war, which sapped the nation, and therefore universities, of young men to both attend and join Greek Life. To counter the decreasing number of new members caused by wartime, ZBT and SAM opened their membership to non-Jews, and in doing so, lost their Jewish nature. ZBT and SAM are still around today, but can only claim to be “historically” or “traditionally” Jewish fraternities, due to their mixed demographics of Jews and non-Jews, and the accommodations necessary for both groups. AEPi however, never wavered in its stance on membership, and because of this, remained open to Jews only. Not only did AEPi survive the wars of the 20th century, but due to their status of being the only truly Jewish fraternity left, AEPi saw their membership swell in the post-war times, as Jewish university students interested in Greek Life and in maintaining their Jewish heritage flocked to the organization. Hence, today, AEPi is The Jewish
