Nineteen months after Sept. 11, the date that inspired Bridges to the Future, the DU community is mixed in its feelings for Bridges as an effective, balanced forum for political discussion.
Executive Director of the Estlow Center and instructor in the mass communications department Laura Ruel said, “I think it’s a creative and innovative effort and I think it’s a fantastic opportunity for the DU community…. to look at the events of Sept. 11 and look how it’s changed our culture. I think a university’s a great environment to explore what’s happened to our culture since Sept. 11.”
A Pioneer Leadership Program student said, “I heard about it, I just don’t know what it is.”
Although this student was inspired by “Bowling for Columbine” to attend Michael Moore’s speech sponsored by Bridges, she said, “I thought [Bridges] was about DU in the future. I think it’s a like a lot of good ideas at DU; people don’t take it to the next step.”
Freshman Karin Swenson attributes her lack of familiarity with Bridges to lack of advertising.
“I’ve heard reference to the name, but I could not tell you specifically what they did on campus or who was part of it,” she said. “I know it was some kind of student group, but didn’t really know the details.”
Among those who are familiar with Bridges to the Future, the reaction also includes the perception that Bridges favors conservatism.
“It’s because those are issues that are important to the administration, not the students,” Associate Professor in Mass Communications Rodney Buxton said. “If the administration wants the students to become more politically involved, it has to listen to the students, allow the students to suggest choices. If the administration doesn’t, Bridges is going to be less successful, and it won’t promote political awareness.”
When asked to respond to people who would like students to have more input, Associate Director of Special Community Programs Terry Williams said, “I don’t think people know we’ve been involved [because] it’s just been in smaller groups.” He referred to interaction between Bridges and student organizations, citing as an example the “Lost Asian American History” Symposium, which was co-sponsored by Bridges and the Colorado Asian Pacific Student Alliance.
Executive Director of Special Community Programs Donna Wilson said students, faculty, staff and the Colorado ambassadors were included. The ambassadors, invited by President Albert Yates of CSU and Chancellor Daniel Ritchie, served to attend events, suggest ideas, “as well as spreading the word to their constituencies and carrying that dialogue back into their organization.”
“It’s taken a while to pick up on the momentum,” she admitted, adding, “There haven’t been as many liberal voices as many conservative voices. Part of that is how things lined up. We’ve really made more a process of working with students. Although it’s taken a while, we feel we are on the right road.”
Michael Moore’s speech appealed to students, was ultra-liberal, drew a record of 7,000 and showcased Bridge’s potential to incorporate a more diverse line up of speakers.
“The Bridges to the Future is a good example bringing in people from different experiences,” Associate Professor of Mass Communications Margaret Thompson said. “I think Michael Moore was great.”
When asked to explain Moore’s success, Wilson said, “Definitely he speaks to young people and the audience was clearly university students and high school students. He addresses subjects that people really want to discuss whether you agree or not. He’s thought-provoking.”
Williams said, “He’s controversial and at the time, and he was the first one really charismatic. He’s the first one at the opposite end of the spectrum.”
Wilson said, “We aren’t doing things just for us. I want the students to be really proud that there’s something that they’re involved in. It’s reaching out to the community of Colorado and it’s something very special. It’s not any better than the small things we do, but it’s unusual,” she said. “Certainly we are continuing students taking the lead on Bridges.”
Chancellor Ritchie said preceding Cardinal Francis George’s speech March 31, “We’re so proud of what we have done together. People are talking and thinking about the values, what are they and what were they and what they should be.”
(This is the second of a four-part series on campus apathy and lack of political involvement.)
