Insincere Apology
After Susan B. Anthony was arrested in 1872 for attempting to vote in the presidential election, she said, “When 100 to 1,000,000 people enter into a free government, they do not barter away their natural rights, they simply pledge themselves to protect each other in the enjoyment of them through prescribed judicial and legislative tribunals. They agree to abandon the methods of brute force in the adjustment of their differences and adopt those of civilization.”
Sadly, Anthony’s utopia is not yet realized, as patriarchy is but one “brute force” that still renders incomplete the possibility of true civilization. Patriarchy has many definitions, however, it is, at its essence, the idea that society caters to men and traditional masculinity at the cost of all other people and genders.
Despite the fact that the U.S. News and World Report asserts that 58.1 percent of our student body identifies as female, we have a male undergraduate Student Senate president with the gall to shame female sexuality on a social network as large as Twitter.
That is a real life example of patriarchy. While we all make mistakes out of naivety or ignorance, Southall’s insincere apology about his “six followers” renders the entire situation completely reprehensible.
I do not believe it unreasonable that if someone is to “represent” me, they must at the least be sensitive to the issues and concerns of oppressed populations on campus. It should be a tenet of student leadership to value diversity and respect the enriching differences among us.
Ryan Vollrath is a senior studying history and psychology.
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Sincere Apology
This is a response to the Undergraduate Student Senate President Nick Southall. I was present at the Student Senate meeting this Wednesday.
I witnessed a very sincere apology from Nick Southall. My fellow brave students then stood up to tell the Senate of their own experiences, as well as what needs to be done now.
Last year I was the elected co-chair of a student organization. With this job come the tasks of essential communication and sacrifice of time.
As a former elected president of a student organization, I give you this advice: I hold you responsible to fix your mistakes with actions and not just words.
You are an elected leader, and to be such is to be held accountable for your actions. You must also be held to a higher standard. Many students reacted with surprise when you did not list one single leader outside of Student Senate last year when the Senate elections took place.
This letter is to enable you to get involved in some way that does not involve Student Senate and take action.
Stop by the women’s center in Baker, as it is only one floor above the Student Senate Office. Make goals to help a student organization event. Go to a women’s organization and try to better understand the problems that women face every day. Communicate to leaders outside Senate. Become a leader that is respected.
We, your constituents, wait for your excited involvement within our community.
Sarah Chadwell is a senior studying global studies and served as co-chair of Open Doors, OU’s LGBTIQQAA student union in 2012-13.
