Dear 2004-2005 Undergraduate Students Association Council:
Congratulations on being elected to office. Having campaigned
tirelessly, you can be proud of yourselves.
The hard work starts soon, but first it would perhaps be
beneficial to reflect on the elections that just passed.
They were extremely close. Most contested races were won by slim
margins. For the fifth consecutive year, the president was elected
with less than 53 percent of the vote. The student body is
polarized.
Students First! will control council once again. SF! candidates
competed against a slate headed by a current councilmember with a
history of alienating people ““ whether they be independent,
affiliated with SF!, or affiliated with the slate that he quit.
Indeed, Josh Lawson built a broad coalition: The array of people
who opposed him was remarkable.
Still, he almost won.
The narrow margin of victory should sound warning bells for SF!.
Believing SF! to be elitist and self-serving, a significant portion
of undergraduates would vote for almost anyone over them.
As the dominant slate, it is SF!’s duty to reach out to
these people. They should do everything possible to alleviate
concerns about what many perceive to be a biased student group
funding system. They should work to improve relations with
fraternities and sororities, the Jewish Student Union and
independent student groups like Bruin Democrats and Bruin
Republicans.
To a degree, this process has begun, but it must continue if SF!
is to gain more credibility beyond its base of supporters.
While SF! is the dominant slate, its councilmembers aren’t
the only ones responsible to represent all students. In past years,
councilmembers unaffiliated with SF! have acted poorly toward
members of the slate. The 2002-2003 president, for example,
constructed a friends and enemies list ““ anyone associated
with SF! was an enemy.
Next year’s council must do better. The urge to work
together should be a function of an understanding that through a
united effort USAC could be much more effective.
Right now, the administration has shown no sign it will repeal
expected cumulative progress. Increases in student fees for the
year after next and beyond seem imminent. And certain politicians
in Sacramento treat outreach programs about as seriously as
Californians treated Gary Coleman’s run for governor.
Anything less than a comprehensive student front against bad policy
will be ineffective.
In one regard you are lucky: Many of you agree on what problems
the student body faces. But can you set aside differences to get
things done?
Truthfully, prospects look grim. If the lack of respect students
have for each other wasn’t clear during campaigning, perhaps
it was Thursday night. Groups chanted back and forth, some showing
up wearing shirts with the expletive “Fuck SF!,” and
the current USAC president loudly and clearly called Lawson a
bitch.
Given the talent, passion and sincerity you all have, there is
no reason relations with each other shouldn’t improve.
Please keep in mind that if they don’t, the ones hurt will
be those who elected you ““Â your fellow students.
Best of Luck.
Sincerely,
The Daily Bruin