It’s been interesting watching the Ohio University student government elections unfold this year. As an alumnus and someone who was involved in student and community politics at OU, it’s fascinating to see how little has changed.
Athens continues to be one of the most unique places in Ohio, a place where civic engagement and community organizing continues to play a meaningful role in everyday life of its residents.
Athens is a place where its citizens stand up to injustice. From its deep history in the labor and environmental movements, to being the only county in Ohio to stand up for marriage equality during the 2004 statewide vote, Athens has stood out as somewhere special.
Athens also has its share of contradictions. Like the coal barons of old, OU continues to be run by an unelected trustee board, and an autocratic administration that seems bent on running the place like a corporation. Increasingly, it treats its students like a product to be shipped out of a factory.
Like any boss who’s trying to increase the speed of the assembly line, President McDavis knows you must first break the back, and the spirit of its workforce.
Senate Bill 5, that the president supports, intentionally strips the right of faculty to come together to make improvements in the work place. It’s also an attack on the maintenance and janitorial staff that keep OU safe and beautiful.
It’s within this context that OU students have a choice in this coming student government election. Students have a choice between the RSVP party and the FACE party.
Like many of the past couple years, it pits the current pro-administration student government, now represented by the RSVP party, against a diverse coalition of OU students who want to see real substantial change on campus.
RSVP openly opposes the right of students to have a real say in how the university is run by giving student trustees voting rights. This attitude shows these students have more of an interest building their own resumes than representing the students at OU.
At a time when young people all over the world are standing up for democracy, dignity and freedom, the RSVP party seems to be out of sync with our generation.
If you feel your current student government serves your interest, and gives you a voice, vote for RSVP.
But if you’re like many OU students who feel OU students deserve better and some real change, it’s pretty clear FACE is your choice.
Will Klatt is a 2009 graduate of Ohio University.
