FOR MANY, to be called a "politico" is as personally insulting as any other derogatory epithet one might imagine. Especially at the University, where the ideal of student self-governance is flaunted in bold on the tri-fold brochures of the Office of Admissions, student activism frequently is given a bipolar stigma. While it is institutionally encouraged and praised as a virtue of students, being overly involved may often invite criticism and intense judgment from peers. As campaigning for student government positions begins about Grounds, students should be very deliberate when evaluating the merits and talents of those students who aspire for elected office.
Much regarding the underlying social stigmas toward student leaders might be gained from unpacking the soubriquet of "politico." Far from a neutral description of those students who hold elected office, the name carries a great deal of baggage regarding the biases of the student community. The name more frequently describes a student whose relentless self-promotion and dedication to upward progress toward high ambitions often rubs his or her peers the wrong way. It is rarely a positive adjective claimed by student leaders. Instead, it relates to the conspicuous politicking and networking of the always-calculating social climber. Yet the adjective frequently is used freely to describe most any student running for office. This begs the question: Is there a natural bias among students against those who run for office?
Most students are active in at least one, usually many, extracurricular activities. Rare indeed is the student who immerses himself completely in social pleasures and/or academic pursuits. Instead, the majority of University students engage in some sort of tertiary activity outside the classroom. However, despite this institutional preponderance on being involved, students also draw a fine line between simply being involved and promoting themselves as the overly ambitious politico. As such, where is this line drawn, and why does it exist?
The United States has gradually developed a fear of elitism in leadership. While Madison and others crafted a federal system that encouraged leadership by a learned elite, modern politics favors the Truman-esque spokesman of the people. Becoming exceptionally involved frequently develops a stigma of elitism among those who later run for subsequent elected office.
Many would argue that the most competent leaders of organizations such as Student Council, the Honor Committee, Inter-Fraternity Council, etc., are those students who are longtime members of their particular group. While not unthinkable, a newcomer would likely find significant challenges to being elected to leadership in an organization with which they are unfamiliar. Yet those students who strive for years to acquire credible credentials for a position frequently are discredited for their politico stigma.
This is unfair and unhealthy to student government at the University. While resume builders abound, most would consider that they are easily identified and discredited based on a conspicuous lack of tangible accomplishments. However, many student leaders who have dedicated themselves to one or two pursuits are too often dismissed as "insiders" or "politicos." When students come around with petitions this month asking for a signature so that they might run for office, take the time to learn more about them. It won't take long to figure out who has a passion for the work of student government and who is simply looking for greater personal glorification. Take the time to ask engaging questions that tease out students' ideas for the sought position. If one juxtaposes the flat pandering of some students with the well-reasoned and passionate responses of others, a clear division can be established.
Avoid the prejudices so frequently assigned to those students who seek to serve the University without reward of academic credit or financial compensation. Few indeed are the headline stories venerating the deeds of the politico elite. More abundant, instead, are the countless hours these elected -- and unelected -- student leaders will be asked to labor in the pursuit of making this institution a better place than when they found it.
While student government is not for everyone, it is not a calling worth the careless slander of so many rational students. Take the time to meet the candidates running for election. Read their fliers and handouts. Familiarize yourself with the names you will walk across in chalk. Look further than the endorsements of this paper and other organizations on Grounds. The more active role you take in selecting the students who help serve this University, the less likely you will be to criticize those who find the courage to run.
(Preston Lloyd's column appears Thursdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at plloyd@cavalierdaily.com.)
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