Fraternities aren’t for me, I thought, as bundles of blankets spilled out of my overstuffed Samsonite onto my first-year double. One orientation week and four perspiration-filled basement parties later, I sang a different tune and signed my bid, hands shaking. Through “brotherhood,” I have met some of my closest friends and grown into my own college skin, but I have also sometimes felt like I did not belong to the identity that it promulgated. First-years come to college seeking a group with which they can form a common identity. Fraternity life connects sociable people with high aspirations, and sparks fly. But sometimes, instead of sparking the creation of Facebook, what the New York Times called aggressive, hypersexualized “bro culture,” sexually attacks and harasses women, as Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s Delta Kappa Epsilon chapter at Yale infamously did. Fraternities offer lessons in leadership and teamwork, but they limit themselves by not using their resources for nobler goals such as philanthropy and diversity. If fraternities want a house to live in, they need to stand for more than crushing beer cans and upholding the patriarchy.

The idea of a fraternity as an elite boys’ drinking club seems outdated, but it still carries political weight. According to a Feb. 21, 2014 article in The Atlantic, while only 8.5 percent of collegiate men are frat brothers, 76 percent of male U.S. senators and representatives and 69 percent of presidents since the turn of the 20th century have donned Greek letters. Somewhat countering the narrative of politics as a male-dominated space, 22 sorority-affiliated women currently serve on the 115th Congress, according to the North American Inter-Fraternity Conference. It’s not just the Capitol and the White House either — Fortune 500 executives are 85 percent Greek, per the same Atlantic report.

Given the dominance of fraternity brothers in politics and big business, the question arises: Are there any explanations? A Nov. 2017 article in the New York Times describes fraternities as “organizations that divide people by race, class and gender.” By their demographics, the largest fraternities target the group in power in all three of those criteria — middle-to-upper-class white men.  That cross-section will be more financially successful than the general population on average. It’s no surprise, given the demographics, that in 2013, nearly two-thirds of the fraternity men in Congress were Republicans, according to the IFC.

This position of privilege is an opportunity to do good, and some Greek groups invest themselves fully in philanthropy and service. In 2013, Sigma Chi Fraternity raised its one-millionth dollar for the Huntsman Cancer Institute, and that figure is roughly $1,400,000 today. Fraternities and sororities can unite members around causes, as well as bolster campus awareness of issues and effective charities. Sigma Chi, Phi Kappa Tau and several other groups have Community Service Chairmen in each chapter who coordinate service events and educate the chapter on the importance of what they’re doing. This is a step forward, and by emphasizing service and philanthropy, fraternities can work together toward constructive goals.

Despite a preponderance of members in respected institutions and despite the illustrious words on every fraternity’s website, the image of puke-covered Sperrys is hard to shake, even for the media. A Sept. 27 New Yorker article referred to Judge and Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s “loutish, aggressive frat-boy persona,” in reference to Kavanaugh’s argumentative tone during his Senate hearing. Most of the direct attention fraternities get in mainstream media is for hazing injuries, such as those detailed in a Sept. 23 article in the Boston Globe on the indictment of a University of Massachusetts Amherst group.

One reason fraternities still have this image is that their national leadership often represents the most fanatical of their membership. Someone who chooses to devote his life to fraternity life at age 50 is not likely to fall into the “casual fan” category. In June 2017, I flew to Las Vegas for my fraternity’s national convention. I was shocked to hear the frat’s CEO speak about how he would “protect brothers” from “BS” allegations of sexual assault and claimed that back in his day “you could just be a guy,” and now, if you “look at a girl sideways, you’ll get a lawsuit.” I left the meeting disgusted and disillusioned. National leadership guides each local chapter, so attitudinal changes at the top filter down into individual groups.

Fraternities are in the empowered position of having the resources and ability to create change. Philanthropy and inclusion constructively use these resources and imprint skills on brothers. Animal House, your moment has passed.