The purpose of student government is to reinforce a structure of democracy within our institution. Now, I’m not a very political person, but I assume that having a group of mature, able-minded adults to represent us, to advocate on our behalf and to use our money for the greater good of our campus is desirable for any university.
Despite this romantic concept, however, I am led to believe that no one really gives a damn about the Associated Students of the University of Oregon. Although they try to get us to care, many of us see them as just another group of students, albeit one of the more elitist, out to boost their résumés. Very few people actually pay attention to them, and therefore very few people actually expect anything of them.
This year, however, I decided to be critical of my student government, if only for the reason that the idea of 20-something-year-olds running around with $11 million at their disposal was worrisome. The amount of bribery, bitching and backbiting I discovered was equally unsettling.
Here we have a plethora of wannabe politicos, clearly high off of their newly found power, having a difficult time handling such responsibilities. Take, for instance, their system of conflict management. When things get rough, our representatives cry victim and file petty grievances that, like the ASUO itself, yield few results. These are personal issues that characterize a system meant to represent us.
Now, the ASUO is transitioning into a whole new cast of amateur politicians, and few care to wonder why our student government has become so self-involved. As they seem to spend more of their time bickering with each other than actually bringing any of their campaign promises to fruition, we fail to see how the ASUO actually benefits our campus. We fail to see their purpose and potential.
A month ago there were canvassers, posters and bright shades of yellow and green everywhere. Yet, come Election Day, only 16 percent of the student body actually bothered making the great effort of clicking around on DuckWeb for a few minutes to choose their representatives.
Why did 84 percent of us not even bother? Because there is an ever-growing dichotomy between the student government and the student body. The latter is fairly apathetic. We, the student body, have become so indifferent to our school’s political process, and therefore the student government is not held accountable. Now, it is no wonder that their level of maturity, of professionalism, leaves so much to be desired; we deserve this government. After all, why should the student government care what we think when the greater majority of us don’t even bother to vote?
However, beyond the petty drama that typifies our government, these people have the potential to really make a difference. They can act as intermediaries between us and the administration. They can advocate on our behalf, and on the behalf of prospective UO students everywhere. They can protect our rights, our resources and our money.
But our student government can only represent us when they know what we want. They need our educated input. So go ahead and voice your opinion. It’s as easy as stopping by the ASUO office, e-mailing an exec or sending a letter to the editor to share your ideas. How should tickets be distributed? What criteria should be used for allocating funds? How necessary it is for the Knight Library to be open 24 hours? Finally, where do you think our money should be going?
Whatever you choose to do, get involved in bridging the gap between our student body and student government. Be critical of the ASUO. Pay attention to their conduct, analyze their actions and hold them accountable, because they do more than file grievances and harbor superiority complexes; they represent us – and they need to be kept in check.
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