Sororities have been considered to uphold and reinforce traditional femininity and heteronormative actions, which create difficulties for lesbian, queer, and bisexual-identified (LQB) members who may fall outside of those norms in these organizations. These spaces, often influenced by strict gender roles and assumptions of heterosexuality, require LQB members to navigate a difficult situation with their sexuality and how to be authentically themselves in such spaces. A study by Sasso et al. (2026) explores how LQB sorority members are affected by internalized stigma, societal expectations of femininity, and the need for selective authenticity within sorority spaces that may not be welcome to LQB women. Despite these challenges, sororities can also provide spaces of affirmation and belonging for LQB women, and can form a sense of belonging and identity for women in sorority spaces. Despite the challenges set by heteronormative culture within sororities, LQB sorority members have much benefit from being within the sorority and can help make a greater sense of community.
Balancing Identity and Conformity in Heteronormative Spaces
For LQB sorority members, navigating sorority life often involves hiding their identity due to expectations of a predominantly heteronormative culture. Sororities emphasize traditional gender roles, which can create environments where LQB members feel pressure to conform to heteronormative ideals. Sororities intermingle with fraternities, and sometimes there are some expectations of having date nights or hook ups with some of the members of the fraternities within the sororities. Women within sororities experience “forms of compulsory heterosexuality where members conform toward expectations of femininity to avoid scrutiny” (Sasso et al., 2026). Many participants in this study described the tension between embracing their sexual identities and meeting the expectations of their chapters of being comfortable with those they may not normally be attracted to, particularly during recruitment and social events. They might feel pressured by those around them to adhere to the heterosexual norms put into place, and to want to push themselves to adhere in order to fit in with the sorority. LQB women may also instead be attracted to other members of the sorority but may need to hide or suppress their feelings as to not be outed or make it uncomfortable within the sorority. This pressure often led to the selective masking of their sexual orientation to appear as heterosexual to other members to avoid marginalization or judgment.
Affirming Gender Identity Through Femininity
Sororities tend to be exclusionary to LQB individuals due to the reinforcement of heteronormative practices, but they can also be a way for them to express all parts of themselves when they are accepted in sorority spaces . Many participants reported that their sorority membership allowed them to express and embrace their womanhood in a way they could not previously. This is despite responses reporting needing to selectively conceal aspects of their sexual identities. As one participant responded, sorority membership allowed her to, “separate who [she loves] from who [she is] friends with” (Sasso et al., 2026). When being around women who are more feminine and more openly express their attraction and femininity, LQG women can find that they are able to focus on the sorority friendships. They can be more comfortable with their womanhood from less pressure to be in a romantic relationship with those around them and can focus more on forming bonds with other members. Sororities reinforce gender norms, but with acceptance and understanding of LQG members, they can be a way to allow them to flourish and express themselves fully.
Finding Belonging Through Sisterhood
Despite the challenges of navigating heteronormative environments, some LQB members found a sense of belonging and support within their sororities due to having specific trusted members. Sisterhood within sororities is very important, and is repeatedly reinforced in order to have an intense sense of community with sororities. Many sororities discriminate intentionally or not against their LQB members due to their normal practices. Some of them needed to make friendships with trusted people and hide their identities within the sorority, “[they are] formative to their identity and gender expression, [they] created supportive networks through secret sisters, and engaged in specific coping strategies to avoid stereotypes or stigma.” (Sasso et al. 2026). These trusted peer networks emerged as an important source of support and belonging. Secret sisters are members who are trusted, “LQB sorority members… who [serve] as allies to help them navigate events related to sexual health, sexual violence, parties, or mixers with fraternities.” (Sasso et al. 2026). Making these trusted connections within the sorority is how these members tend to thrive in sorority spaces. Since sororities can reinforce the normative standards, having some who are trusted members, secret sisters, create an alleviation from the pressure of needing to mask. Sororities could focus more effort into wanting to quell these normative beliefs, so that they do not need to have secret sisters where they are only coming out to them, but should be open with their LQB identities.
Toward Inclusive Sorority Practices
By discussing those who are LQB within sororities, it may make needed changes to sorority culture to make it more accepting to all members. “LQB sorority members may conceal or negotiate their identities to fit heterofeminine norms. This rush to straightness… is frequently in response to femmephobia or fears of masculinization” (Sasso et al. 2026). There is a focus on being heterosexual and those relationships since they are most common within society, but LQB women do not fit inside those norms. They also fear masculinization perception by having members who are LQB since being so can be considered being more masculine. Since sororities celebrate and reinforce femininity, there is a contradiction in the beliefs, and that is what can drive much of the heteronormativity within sororities. To combat this, sororities can promote visible LQB leadership, discuss with members being LQB within sororities, and have leadership set a positive example for others to be accepting to LQB members. Furthermore, professors and sorority leadership can provide resources for LQB sisters to come out, and promote a healthier environment. Working together with sorority leadership and members alike, outcomes for LQB sorority members can be improved and members may experience less pressure to conceal their identities.
Conclusion
LQB sorority members often face an untenable position within sorority groups due to their identity. They must find a way to be themselves within a group that celebrates and reinforces societal norms with women. LQB women within sororities tackle this in a way that hides their identity and they portray a mask of not who they really are. They can be spaces for LQB women to thrive though finding secret sisters to trust, and to be a part of an organization that allows them to experience and be fulfilled with their womanhood. This study is one of few of this type, and it is able to discuss a population that goes overlooked within sororities and college life as a whole. While transgender individuals exist and sometimes thrive within sorority spaces, the study did not focus on the gender identity of these individuals, rather focusing on the sexual orientation of these people. Further studies can focus on transgender people within the sorority/fraternity space and how they navigate those spaces with their gender identity. Sororities can be a space where LQB women thrive, and it can teach those who reinforce the heteronormative status quo new ways to experience their own gender and sexuality in being more accepting of LQB members.
Take Home Points:
- Sororities tend to reinforce heteronormative ideals, making it difficult for those who fall outside of it within those sororities to thrive within them.
- Sororities can be a place where members can find sisterhood and camaraderie, and working on those heteronormative cultures can help society at large. It does not need to be exclusive, and they can set the way for a more broad inclusive culture shift.
- Even despite falling into heteronormativity, it can be a space for LQB members to truly understand their identity.
References
Goodman, M. A., Martin, G., & George, A. (2023). “We hear you, we see you,and we are with you.” An analysis of NPC sorority chapter social media messages. Journal of Sorority and Fraternity Life Research and Practice,18(2), 67–86.
Langsev, M. (2024). Rush to straightness: Compulsory heterosexuality in Greek letter organizations. Minnesota Undergraduate Research & Academic Journal, 6(1), 1–15.
Sasso, P. A., Davis, K. R., Price-Williams, S., Bullington, K. E., & Ketchum, L. (2026). Negotiating femininity: Lesbian, queer, and bisexual women navigating gender, sexuality, and identity in sororities. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. https://doi-org.lib-proxy.fullerton.edu/10.1037/dhe0000718
Worthen, M. G. F. (2014). Blaming the jocks and the Greeks?: Exploring collegiate athletes’ and fraternity/sorority members’ attitudes toward LGBT individuals. Journal of College Student Development, 55(2), 168–195. https://doi.org/10.1353/csd.2014.0020
Image: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/09/sorority-rush-coaches-recruitment-sec/684094/
