I read The Daily Free Press opinion page for the first time in a while yesterday and I was reminded why I do not ever bother to check it out (“Out with old, in with useless,” April 12, p. 6). The editorial states that both slates running for Student Union office do not “[have] any clue what concerns this university’s student body.” The piece goes on to say&-in so many words&-that violent riots are the only way that students’ demands can be met by the administration.
Clearly, The Free Press does not remember famous Boston University alumnus Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who combined what some thought to be radical ideas with peaceful protest. This naïve author thinks that Renew BU has no chance to make a change because it is not radical enough, while BUnited’s vice presidential candidate erroneously states that Renew BU “[thinks] the only way you can get something done within the administration is to start a protest, start a riot.”
Both BUnited’s vice presidential candidate and yesterday’s misguided author could not be more wrong about the real Renew BU. Presidential candidate Arthur Emma, vice presidential candidate Daniel Ellis and potential treasurer Benjamin Noble have worked tirelessly to reach out to the university’s student body and identify issues that really irk the common student.
The issues they identify are ones that have bothered all students this past year &-and one particular issue, the lack of a football team, is one that students have been upset about since 1997. Renew BU’s proposals might seem idealistic to some, but we should be excited that this innovative slate is doing its best to make changes around campus that benefit all students. Emma, Ellis and Noble are not only willing to work a ridiculous amount of hours to ensure real changes are made, they are open to students’ ideas, feelings and criticisms.
I’m not dumb enough to believe that if elected, Renew BU will be able to bring back a football team, raise the print quota or improve the BU Shuttle within one year. However, I’m hopeful that they can get the ball rolling on these issues — issues like the ones they want to tackle take time to correct, but we need impassioned and collected leaders like those of Renew BU to stand up and say, “Let’s all work together and see what we can do about this.”
I support Renew BU because it excites me that the group is touching on the issues that actually matter to the average student. I will cast my vote proudly for Renew BU because I know it shares the same concerns I do.
Billy Kirland
COM 2011
Former Daily Free Press Columnist
This is an account occasionally used by the Daily Free Press editors to post archived posts from previous iterations of the site or otherwise for special circumstance publications. See authorship info on the byline at the top of the page.
