Time is running out for Student Union’s initiatives to address requests some students made for a smoking ban and to pass a proposal on gender-neutral housing, members said at their general assembly meeting Monday night.
Union President Howard Male said that while Union has tried to offer a solution to the smoking dilemma on campus, they are responding to a small group of people who have sought to ban smoking on campus.
The initiative has begun to be explored by the Student Health Services, Male, a School of Hospitality Administration and School of Management senior, said.
“It’s also an issue of uniformity,” he said. “If this policy is good enough for the medical campus, why not the Charles River campus?”
SMG sophomore Caitlin Seele, a member of the advocacy committee, said the implementation and receptivity of smokers to change remains an unknown.
“There is no consensus on advocacy [committee]. We don’t know how this idea would take shape,” she said. “One idea is shelter type things like hot spots around Mugar . . . where smokers already tend to gather to smoke, but we’re not sure if it’d be a tent or a shelter or what.”
Other Union members, such as College of Arts and Sciences freshman Sean Gunning, said that any actual changes are unlikely.
“This might be a bit bold, but it seems to me there is no reasonable solution to this problem because the only solution would be to ban it, and that’s unrealistic,” Gunning said. “If people have a problem with getting smoke blown in their face for a second or two when they’re leaving a building, I think they need to toughen up and just get to class.”
Regarding the initiatives for gender-neutral housing, some Union members said they face tight deadlines, as well as logistical problems.
CAS sophomore Natalie Siddique, who is heading the team on gender-neutral housing, said that Union members need to show that the initiative has support from students.
“We want to make sure they aren’t segregated, but also make sure they feel safe,” Siddique said.
Union Vice President Alex Staikos, a junior in SMG, said that gender-neutral housing faces a quickly approaching deadline.
“Time is actually running out to get this passed,” Staikos said.
As Union members discussed trial areas or floors, CAS junior Brandon Wood said he favored a smaller housing setting for the test group.
“The [Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, Intersex] community faces enough violence as it is, so I think safety is a huge concern for them. I favor small housing as opposed to a floor in a big dormitory style building,” he said. “It seems much safer, much more conducive to the project.”
SMG freshman David Whatley said he wanted to clarify whether the gender-neutral initiative is focusing on sexual minorities as a prime demographic.
“We’re not trying to gear this towards the LGBTQI community, but it’s just to offer another option for housing. There are 20 to 30 universities that already do it. We’re a very progressive campus and I think that should be reflected,” Whatley said.
Siddique said Union members still need to focus on getting a mission state for the project.
“We need to know what are goals exactly are and what we want to get out of this,” Siddique said.
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