After reading the comment section on the recent New York Times article about the gridlock that followed SHUT IT DOWN’s victory in the recent University of Michigan Central Student Government elections, many commenters view the student body as “getting what it deserves.” Those elections, in which only 18.5% of the student body voted, resulted in SHUT IT DOWN winning an effective plurality in the general assembly. Now that SHUT IT DOWN is sticking to its campaign promise to functionally shut down CSG, one is left to wonder: Is this what students deserve? Is any attempt to revive CSG’s key programs antithetical to the democratic process?
Some commenters would say, “Yes.” One commenter specifically said, “Hopefully, the students are learning that in a democracy, you get the government you deserve.”
Another said that the student government “is going to get a taste of what it means to think that winning a majority of votes among a vast minority of students does not mean you have a mandate.”
With respect to these keyboard philosophers, I dissent. University of Michigan students deserve better, and those with power in student government, regardless of party affiliation, should do all they can to serve students, even amid attempts to shut the system down.
Students deserve a representative government that promotes academic freedom, fosters fellowship and guarantees a public forum for student expression. Such rights are guaranteed in the preamble of the Constitution of the U-M Ann Arbor Campus Student Body, which SHUT IT DOWN representatives swore to uphold. Beyond these rights, students expect CSG to provide hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding for student organizations and resources that make our student tuition worthwhile. Just because a few thousand of our peers voted to deprive the student body of these opportunities does not mean we don’t deserve them. Indeed, all three branches of CSG, including the judiciary, have an affirmative duty to safeguard student rights.
If this argument is unavailing, let the numbers demonstrate that SHUT IT DOWN has no democratic mandate to deprive students of anything. Less than half of the voting students chose SHUT IT DOWN as their first choice for CSG’s presidential slate. As such, less than half of the elected assembly members were SHUT IT DOWN candidates; presently, less than one-third are still in office. Statistically, therefore, a majority of students voted for parties that pledged to keep CSG operational. The popular opinion among those who voted in the March elections was not to shut down student government, and the mandate is that CSG should keep serving students.
If there was truly a strong mandate to bring student government to a halt, each college’s council would have closed its doors. But they haven’t: Not a single student council has halted its activities in support of SHUT IT DOWN.
The University is welcoming a cohort of thousands of students, including first-years in both undergraduate and graduate programs and a host of transfer students. These newcomers don’t deserve to enter a campus without an effective forum for student representation. During my freshman year, I remember how excited I was to get involved with student government after serving on student council throughout high school. The first-years of today won’t have those same opportunities thanks to SHUT IT DOWN.
Because students deserve better than a shuttered student government, any attempt by CSG officials to revive its key services — including student organization funding, AirBus, scholarship programs and lighthearted campus events — is consistent with the democratic process. It’s a shame that we can’t rely on the Assembly to take up this mantle, but I have seen firsthand how hardworking members of CSG have fought to provide services for students.
Not only are certain assembly members working for students who didn’t even vote in March, but they are also providing services to those who voted to shut the government down. Perhaps it’s telling that leaders from hundreds of student organizations — including several that endorsed SHUT IT DOWN — have inquired about when CSG’s key services will be restored this year.
CSG will hold its next elections this November to fill a dozen or so seats currently occupied by short-term appointees. These elections should prove themselves to be a real referendum on real student priorities. Although those who want CSG shut down are well organized, the silent majority posed against them may speak up soon. There is certainly a sizable set of students who sympathize with SHUT IT DOWN’s values but disagree with the party’s actions. Time will tell whether this impression is right or wrong.
Comment section naysayers notwithstanding, students deserve better from their student leaders. They deserve to get their money’s worth from student government and to receive the benefits promised to them as students. Any attempt to safeguard the rights of students, even amid attempts to “shut it down,” should be lauded and encouraged.
Tyler Watt is a third-year Law student at the University. He has served for six years in student government spaces, including as president of LSA Student Government and Student General Counsel of CSG. He can be reached at trwatt@umich.edu.
The post The ballot box and CSG: Did students get what they deserved? appeared first on The Michigan Daily.
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