IMAGINE an upper-middle class home in the Victorian era. The woman and the man have their separate spheres: The woman manages domestic life, ensuring the draperies are not faded and the food does not become cool before the man sits down at the table. She makes few decisions throughout the day. Tomorrow the man may decide to sell the house and move to another city where a better job awaits.
At the University, the Student Council plays the traditional role of woman. It receives a small allowance from the administration, with which it can improve the décor of the SAC or provide a few dollars to a student organization. There is no formal democratic mechanism by which students can legislate change at the University; what power we do have derives from our capacity to organize and apply pressure to those who do hold the reins. The administration governs by rule of thumb and statute.
Because the Student Council only has control over marginal University activities, "student self-governance" remains a hollow phrase on Grounds. Although a vast majority of students voted last fall on a referendum to support the purchase of renewable energy credits and although Student Council voted unanimously in support of such a program, it cannot be implemented.
Student Council has no power to implement a mandatory fee that, in the opinion of Vice President for Student Affairs Pat Lampkin, does not have a direct impact on education at the University. Lampkin said she must endorse any mandatory fees before they can be considered for approval by the Board of Visitors. Because she has unchecked veto power of these types of Student Council proposals, Student Council has merely advisory capacity. If the U.S. Congress were an advisory body and could not override a presidential veto on a spending bill, for instance (and the president were not elected by the U.S. populace), would America not be "self-governed."
Student Council is not powerless any more than the Victorian middle-class woman was powerless. Just as she could occasionally convince or coerce her husband into changing his behavior, so too the Student Council can occasionally convince the administration to change policy.
As former Council President Noah Sullivan pointed out in an interview, advisory power can have real positive effects for the University. "Effective Student Councils are able to gather information, form solid proposals and push them through the administration," he said. Sullivan credits the creation of the Housing Office, online course evaluations and late night busing to Student Council efforts.
Coercive student power is not a recent phenomenon. Three decades ago, Student Council President Larry Sabato organized students to fill Alderman Library while state legislators were visiting. This maneuver created the impression that Alderman was extremely over crowded, and in turn prodded legislators into allocating funds to build Clemons Library.
Indeed, throughout history formally weak groups of people have amplified their power through shrewd organizing.
In the 21st year of war between Athens and Sparta, a woman named Lysistrata led a band of Athenian women who refuse to have sexual relations with their husbands and lovers until the men end the war. The women won and the war ended. The withholding of sexual favors, or similar pressure tactics, however, do not constitute efficient governance.
American colonists faced a similarly inefficient mechanism of changing royal policy when protesting the Sugar and Stamp Acts nearly two and a half centuries ago.
The colonists only had to fight half a decade to ensure they would not pay the king any taxes on sugar or anything else. Students have achieved varying degrees of success using informal power tactics through the recent history of the University. Sometimes the administration agrees to student demands quickly, while other times it never does. Regardless, "student self-governance" is not formal or democratic but rather a game of organizing power. Power of mobilization can accomplish wonderful or terrible political objectives, but it is bound to do so in a fashion that creates factions and opponents among University constituencies that should be allied in issues of common interest.
Zack Fields' column appears Mondays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at zfields@cavalierdaily.com
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