CJSL Rules|

Fraternities, by definition, are about brotherhood and all the emotions related to this. Blood brothers are related by a common parent or parent, growing up together, living together all with shared experiences. Frat brothers are related also by shared experiences, starting from pledging/neophyte rites. This is especially relevant to “batch” mates, neophytes that endured the pledging rites together and got accepted together.

These are experiences that are common to ALL members of the frat and since, by tradition, pledging is very similar batch to batch. This insures that the experiences are common regardless of batch and therefore ALL members’ experiences are relatively the same. This common experience gives each frat member a sense of belonging, of security, and of good times. Also membership allows frat members to wear their frat colors and insignias as a form of advertising their membership to a frat with all the pride and security it comes with. Thus, I believe that greek sweatshirts and other fraternity apparel perform this necessary function regardless of the actual fraternity.