Pin for Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority's 75th Anniversary

Symbol of sisterhood

In the Jim Crow era, Ethel Hedgeman (1887–1950), a student at Howard University in Washington, D.C., helped form Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first sorority founded by and for African American women. The sorority celebrated its 75-year diamond anniversary in 1983 with this commemorative gold pin with ivy leaves, which symbolize strength, endurance, and lasting friendship. Amid societal hostility, Black Greek-letter organizations fostered self-help, solidarity, and a sense of cultural pride and connectedness on college campuses, helping young women forge lifelong bonds through rituals and shared experiences.