Steppin' Up

Brotherhood generates this homemade music. It would sound different if one member were missing. That's the point: It's all or nothing.\nSix Alpha Phi Alpha members meet on a dance court almost every night to fine tune stepping, a traditional African American dance staged within black fraternities and sororities.\nStepping features sequences of stomps, claps and sometimes chants, forming a steady rhythm. Alpha Phi Alpha's dedication has won it competition honors, but more importantly, the members' loyalty to the cultural art has allowed stepping to survive for decades in the fraternity. \n"It's not only competitive, but we represent the frat," says junior Ollie Hairston, who has stepped for two years. "We can show off, and it's a good experience because we can promote the brotherhood."\nFive members of IU's chapter of the nation's oldest African American fraternity won a step contest Oct. 6 at the Circle City Classic in Indianapolis in which 10 teams from Indiana fraternities and sororities competed. The champions were sophomore Brandon Williams, junior Jason Lee, senior Alvoy Bryan and graduate students Mike Burton and Jon Bennett. \nAlpha Phi Alpha has nine competitive steppers, but those five were chosen because they are the best, Lee says, the "step master" and inventor of many steps. They performed a 10-minute "Nerds" theme, wearing thick glasses, high pants and cardigans and pausing to pretend to study books.\nThe chapter won $1,500, which will pay for Panhellenic events, such as a scholarship pageant and future step events. The steppers need monetary prizes because they have to generate their own funds, often staying at other chapters and paying from their own pockets for gas. They plan to step Nov. 7 at an exhibition at IU-Kokomo.\n"We really don't ask for any help," Bennett says. "We invite the fraternity to come out and ask for an opinion, but what we're doing is pretty closed. We want to surprise people."\nTime also is sacrificed. Steppers practice their routine almost every night at least a month before a contest. They put in an hour or so a night for a 20-minute competition. Alpha Phi Alpha competes in three or four events a year, including one at IU, which the chapter won last year. \nSteppers also flaunt their moves at parties. They often wear black-and-gold T-shirts displaying their greek letters and black jeans, but sometimes dress up. They begin their numbers with popular hip-hop or rap music, but then let the claps and smacks take over.\nA stepper's experience is prominently displayed at parties. People who don't step dance typically gather in a large crowd in the middle of the room. Rookie steppers perform in a line surrounding the crowd. Each pledge class gets its own line, with the most experienced group stepping on the outside.\nThe dance allows the men to flaunt themselves in front of large crowds -- 700 to 800 in September at the Indiana Memorial Union and 3,000 at the Circle City Classic. Precise steppers often point to the audience and grin. \n"It's kind of like a rush," Bennett says. "My experience in the frat brought me out of my shell. When I first saw a show, I felt a rush being in front of so many people, hearing the crowd applaud and being rewarded for the hard work."\nThe goal of a show is to expose new members and advertise the fraternity. Stepping developed at the turn of the 20th century, as African American fraternities became established, according to a documentary called "Steppin'," which showcases several African American greek houses at IU. \nThe movements have generated from traditional African American dancing and military marches, as many black students entered the Student Army Training Corp. Contemporary hip-hop also has been an influence. Steps intend to express fraternal love, tell a story and introduce a house to campus. Today, steppers share steps with chapters, take steps from videos and create their own.\nAlpha Phi Alpha's steppers stay ahead of the other houses with their quick learning, precision and confidence, Bennett says.\nThe stepping tradition has survived year after year at Alpha Phi Alpha mainly because each new fraternity member must perform a "neophyte" show a year after his initiation. Some members continue to step after the initial show. This year, the veterans are Bryan, Burton and Bennett.\n"The small chapter creates closeness," Bennett says, who has stepped for three years. "It helps bring experience so we don't have to start from scratch. We work with a bond that's already there."\nMembership to the fraternity requires loyalty and trust, so the step team already has friendships to build on. The steppers play basketball together, sometimes before a nightly step practice, and many live together in apartments. \n"I can call up any of them if I need money or a ride," Bryan says, who has stepped for two-and-a-half years. "Sometimes we may not like each other, but we still love each other."\nBesides promoting competition and endorsement for a greek house, stepping provides an opportunity for black students to socialize on a predominantly white campus. \n"People get to see you," Bryan says, who has been nicknamed "Pop-a-Quarter" because he keeps stepping, like a jukebox filled with money constantly plays music. "I'm in the School of Music and there aren't many blacks in my classes. It's a way to branch out socially, educationally and have fun with others"