City Council Has No Business Meddling in ASUC Affairs

Never in recent memory have three pieces of paper threatened such a profound impact on the autonomy of the Associated Students of the University of California. With the wave of a pen, one Berkeley politician has potentially wiped out 40 years of the students' struggle for the protection of our First Amendment right to freedom of speech and press, while he is attacking the most autonomous student government in the United States.

The recent resolution drafted by Gordon Wozniak calls for the Berkeley City Council to recognize "the election of the four Student Action Executive Officers." The ongoing battle over the 2005-2006 ASUC elections continues to cast a dark shadow over our association, however there is much more at stake than four executive seats in the ASUC. The impact of this resolution will be much more far-reaching if it validates the decision of one politician to undermine the entire internal processes of the ASUC. The intervention of the city in ASUC elections would not only be an insult to the more than 30,000 students at UC Berkeley, but also a denial of students' power over their own government.

Equally shocking is the proposal which requests the city to send letters to Chancellor Robert Birgeneau, Associate Chancellor Chief of Staff John Cummins and ASUC Auxiliary Director Nadesan Permaul, to protest the results of the ASUC election and intervene in an ongoing student-run process. While we think everyone would agree that a speedy conclusion to the ASUC elections debacle would be ideal, we can say with conviction that the Associated Students at UC Berkeley will not stand to see our student government taken over by an opportunistic politician who is neither a member nor an involved party of our union. In a time when the student voice has been silenced and student representation has been compromised, our student government is the last remaining venue for empowering new young leaders.

Amidst the turmoil that currently exists in the ASUC, Birgeneau's ability to remain a neutral observer must be commended. It demonstrates his respect for the autonomy of the ASUC as well as his trust of students to have the power and capability to resolve their own disputes. The question of autonomy simply comes down to respect of the student voice and process.

Since the 1960s, thousands of UC Berkeley students like Mario Savio and Michael Rossman have protested on the steps of Sproul Plaza and California Hall at the forefront in the fight for free speech and press in student government and the campus newspaper. Fast forward 40 years and students at UC Berkeley are reaping the benefits of the struggle in the form of ASUC autonomy. While it is difficult for students to conceptualize a campus where our voices are silenced, the reality is that student voice has come with a price and a historical struggle. We are part of this struggle, and in order to preserve our autonomy, we must take action.

Whatever the motives of this single city council member may be to involve himself in student elections, the larger impact of this resolution is that the future of the ASUC is up for grabs. This resolution might dictate whether students get the last word to decide what is best for us, or if that decision is left up to the administration or city. We have the opportunity, this Tuesday July 25 at 6:30p.m. at old City Hall (2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way) to stand up and fight to preserve something that many students hold so sacred-our power.

This letter has been signed by incoming Berkeley College Republicans senator Victoria Mitchell and incoming SQUELCH! senator David Wasserman.

Tags: