The historically Black fraternities and sororities of the National Pan-Hellenic Council popularly known as the “Divine Nine” (D9) continue to have a powerful impact on communities, including here in the Upstate, around the nation more than 100 years after most of them were founded.
The contributions of these organizations to society were highlighted at St. Mark United Methodist Church in Taylors on Feb. 20 as part of the congregation’s Black History Month celebrations. The program’s featured speaker was Reuben A. Shelton III, the 34th Grand Polemarch of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., who spoke about the importance of the Divine Nine in the development of leaders within the Black community.
The phrase “Divine Nine” was coined by author Lawrence Ross in his book, “The Divine Nine: the History of African-American Fraternities and Sororities in America” about the nine primarily Black Greek-letter organizations.
In introducing Shelton, St. Mark senior pastor Rev. Charles White Jr. said that historically, any Black politician hoping to gain office would reach out not only to the church, but to the nine fraternities and sororities that have proved so influential.
“We are the living example of civic and political engagement in our communities,” White said. Shelton said even he did not know the extent of the impact and activities his fraternity was involved with until he joined the organization’s leadership.
All of the “Divine Nine” are involved in the same types of efforts, from developing character and leadership among members, to community outreach and combating racism by the power of their example, Shelton said.
He also said each fraternity and sorority has members and alumni who have gone on to become influential voices across a range of fields and organizations.
“When they talk, people listen,” Shelton said.
The collective membership of the “Divine Nine” totals nearly 4 million people bound together by a common vision of community engagement, advocacy and philanthropy.
“We live on the principle that our dream should be bigger than our memories,” Shelton said. “We all take care of our communities. We take care of our seniors. We take care of our babies.
“We are a family together,” he said.
The Divine Nine (National Pan-Hellenic Council)
- Founded in 1906 at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.
- Established as the first African-American intercollegiate fraternity
- More than 700 chapters
- Prominent members include Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., W.E.B. DuBois, Rev. C.T. Vivian, Duke Ellington, Thurgood Marshall, Jesse Owens and Andrew Young
- Founded in 1908 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.
- Established as the first African-American intercollegiate sorority
- More than 1,000 chapters
- Prominent members include Kamala Harris, Maya Angelou, Wanda Sykes, Toni Morrison, Star Jones, and Bernice King
- Founded in 1911 at Indiana University Bloomington
- Similar to other D9 members, the fraternity’s leader is known as the Grand Polemarch
- More than 700 chapters
- Prominent members include Cedric “The Entertainer” Kyles, Charles M. Blow, Tavis Smiley, Marion Brown, Booker T. Jones, Robert L. Johnson, Tom Bradley, Truman Gibson, Hakeem Jeffries, and Johnnie Cochran
- Founded in 1911 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.
- Was the first fraternal organization founded at a historically black college or university (HBCU)
- More than 750 chapters
- Prominent members include Langston Hughes, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Michael Jordan, William “Count” Basie, Shaquille O’Neal, Bayard Rustin, and Earl Graves
- Founded in 1913 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.
- Has become one of the largest sororities founded in the U.S.
- More than 900 chapters
- Prominent members include Cicely Tyson, Joy-Ann Reid, Loretta Lynch, Keisha Lance Bottoms, Aretha Franklin, Mara Brock Akil, and Sherrilyn Ifill
- Founded in 1914 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.
- Is the only fraternity to hold a constitutional bond with a sorority, Zeta Phi Beta
- More than 700 chapters
- Prominent members include George Washington Carver, Frank Marshall Davis, James Weldon Johnson, Kwame Nkrumah, Elijah Cummings, John Lewis, and Harry Belafonte
- Founded in 1920 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.
- Was the first Greek-letter organization to charter a chapter in Africa in 1948
- More than 850 chapters
- Prominent members include Alice Dugged Cary, Lillian E. Fishburne, Zora Neale Hurston, Dionne Warwick, Vivica A. Fox, Chaka Khan, and Sarah Vaughan
- Founded in 1922 at Butler University in Indianapolis
- Is the only one of the four historically Black National Pan-Hellenic Council sororities to be founded at a predominantly white university
- More than 700 chapters
- Prominent members include Marilyn McCoo, Joyce Carol Thomas, Ruth Whitehead Whaley, Renee Powell, Eugenia Charles, and Vanessa Bell Armstrong
- Founded in 1963 at Morgan State University in Baltimore
- As the youngest of the D9, the organization takes pride in the fact that members can meet and interact with founders
- More than 300 chapters
- Prominent members include Terrence C. Carson, Webster Lewis, Harry C. Alford, Tommie Frazier, Melvin Lister, J. Keith Motley, and George Nock
