Photo by: Greg Lau
Undeterred by an autumn snowfall, a large, vocal group of students marched into the AUSA Senate meeting Tuesday evening in Driscoll Gallery to persuade the Senate to pass a resolution supporting a ballot initiative on gay marriage. The Senate reworded a previous resolution and approved it with 15 voting in favor and one abstaining.
The crowd of students, led by the Queer Straight Alliance (QSA) president Moises Munoz, carried posters in support of Referendum I, an upcoming Colorado ballot initiative which would extend basic legal rights to civil unions of same-sex couples.
“Show me what democracy looks like,” said Munoz, clad in a black T-shirt bearing the QSA motto, “The proof that one truly believes is in action,” a quote from the late Bayard Rustin.
The student protestors shouted, “This is what democracy looks like.”
Tuesday night’s display of student activism was in response to a Sept. 19 Senate meeting in which a resolution that called for AUSA support of Referendum I failed to pass.
The uproar was not so much in opposition to the lack of Senate support for Referendum I, but rather the manner in which the resolution failed. Six out of the 15 senators eligible to vote abstained therefore not giving the resolution majority support.
The primary distinction between the two resolutions is in the wording. The new resolution said the Senate was supporting Referendum I on its own rather than on behalf of the entire undergraduate student body.
The student protestors in attendance were unwavering in having the Senate listen to their demand to re-evaluate its stance on Referendum I as well as its broader role as the voice of DU undergraduates.
While Referendum I would not recognize same-sex marriage (Colorado law still defines marriage as the union of one man and one women), it would give same-sex couples legal standing and provide, among others, such rights as hospital visitations, medical decision-making for incapacitated partners, a voice in end of life decisions, and protection of inheritance rights.
“The Senate felt more comfortable with the wording of the new resolution,” stated Sen. Kelsey Yamasaki, who co-sponsored the initial resolution, and also offered a reason as to why some senators abstained from the Sept. 19 vote. “As I understand it, senators abstained because they did not believe Senate had the authority to take a stand on issues not directly pertaining to undergraduates and that such an issue does not fall into its jurisdiction.”
While there was little debate over the merits of Referendum I at Tuesday’s meeting, the very role and purpose of the AUSA Senate was called into question.
“What is the role of the AUSA Senate, administrative or political?” asked sophomore Mary O’Malley before suggesting that the Senate was an inherently political body because each senator had arrived at their posts through political campaigns.
Yamasaki defined the role of the Senate as having three aims. The first is to organize the undergraduate student body by licensing and funding student organizations.
The second is to act as an intermediary and voice student concerns to DU administration.
The Senate’s final function is to utilize all necessary resources to further the general welfare of undergraduate students. It is this third aspect of the Senate’s role that has come under criticism.
Yamasaki acknowledges that the AUSA has both administrative and political duties in its efforts to promote student welfare, but whether it will strive to be a body that promotes activism or upholds the status quo is something that must be determined by students at the ballot box.
“I personally would like to see an activist student senate engaging the DU administration on all issues, engaging the Denver community, the state of Colorado, the US, and the world,” said Yamasaki. But I know others would like to see a much more limited student government. Students can elect leaders to be activists or conservative and must decide what kind of student senate they want. It is up to the student body to decide the ‘power’ the senate has.”
One student offered examples of historical precedent in favor of past DU student Senate activism, citing boycotts of classes to attend political rallies as well as telegrams to Presidents Johnson and Nixon that expressed opposition to the Vietnam War. Similarly, Yamasaki would like to see the senate push the bounds of its potential.
“Am I satisfied currently with the Senate? No. I do not believe that this Senate, nor any student government in history, has reached its full potential,” said Yamasaki. “Student government should be actively involved in all aspects of life.”
AUSA President Aaron Schwarzberg spoke on behalf of the Senate and thanked all the students for attending and inspiring the Senate with their displays of passion. While QSA’s rally may have altered some views on the relevance of Referendum I to the DU community, it certainly helped illustrate that there are students who desire fervent activism of its elected student government.
