Chi Alpha Delta is the oldest Asian-American cultural interest sorority in the United States. It was founded in 1928 at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) by Helen Tomio Mizuhara and Alyce Asahi.[1] The sorority originally had 14 Japanese-American students.[2] On April 5, 1929, the sorority was officially recognized by UCLA.[3] In 2002, the sorority had 65 members, of which less than 10% are Japanese.[2]
The sorority was founded due to racism and segregation.[3] The 14 Japanese-American students were rejected from a Greek sorority, so they decided to form one for the Japanese.[2] These women created this sorority because they thought that they "needed a same-sex, same-race organization in order to feel at home in the university."[3]
In the 1940s, during the yearly Faculty Tea, members wore kimonos and used Japanese styles to fix up their hair. During the 1940s, members were primarily second-generation Japanese Americans who conversed in English.[4]
Members of the sorority celebrate their Asian-American identity through food and fashion. They cook foods from different countries and host fashion shows to recruit new members.[5]
  | Nurturing UCLA Women's Asian Roots and U.S. Lives - Nurturing UCLA Women's Asian Roots and U.S. Lives - Los Angeles Times |
|
|
Wikis
Map
Search
