"We must elect the only ticket that will consistently and courageously defend students: BARE."
To the Editor,
OU students are taking on crippling debt. Top administrators are living in luxury and taking home annual bonuses worth more than most students’ families’ entire incomes. Meanwhile, Board of Trustees members — unelected millionaires — demonstrate at every meeting just how out of touch, oblivious and uncaring they are. And when students try to have their voices heard the only way they can, the board has them arrested.
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In other words, it is no secret that Ohio University is in a state of crisis. A tiny elite of board members and top administrators holds the power not only to extract more and more resources from students, but also to allocate those resources any way they please. They have claimed for themselves the power to make decisions on behalf of students, faculty, staff and Athens community members. It should come as no surprise that they make decisions in their own interests, not in ours.
Students absolutely must reclaim power. For years, the members of BARE have worked tirelessly and fearlessly to do just that. They have put their bodies on the line and accumulated criminal records standing up for student rights. They have fought against rape culture, police brutality and environmental destruction. They have resisted every tuition hike, every administrative raise and every new McMansion with every ounce of energy they have. And they will continue to do so as members of Student Senate next year.
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In years past, Student Senate served as a rubber stamp for administrative policies. It helped its individual members pad their resumes, but not much else. The complacency of past senates is a big part of the reason we are in the current state of crisis. We cannot let that happen again. We must elect the only ticket that will consistently and courageously defend students: BARE. Thanks to BARE members, students will also have an opportunity to vote no confidence in McDavis and the Board of Trustees this election. I hope you will.
Ellie Hamrick is a 2013 Ohio University alumnus living in Brooklyn.
