The Undergraduate Students Association Council will be a very
different beast next year.
The pendulum of power has swung, but this campus will only
suffer if Bruins United blindly follows its momentum.
For this group of students who have been reacting for years
against a political majority they view as malicious and corrupt,
Thursday’s victory was undoubtedly sweet.
But they will fail all students if they are unable to act in the
diplomatic spirit they so often expound.
Seven out of 12 voting offices are now in the hands of Bruins
United members.
The young slate is one seat away from a two-thirds majority and
could potentially gain an unstoppable three-fourths majority if
both external vice presidential candidate Jesse Melgares and
presidential candidate Alex Gruenberg are elected in next
week’s runoff election.
The shift in power is the most dramatic in the 11 years Students
Power! or one of its progenitors has held a majority on
council.
If Bruins United members hold nine of the 13 seats at the
council table next year, they must not become drunk with power and
ignore constructive criticism: two of the slate’s biggest
complaints against the Students First!/Students Power!
tradition.
Bruins United has big plans for reforming USAC ““ many with
merit. But if they are not approached with careful thought and
collaboration and ultimately decided by the student majority the
slate claims to represent, it will be just as unnecessarily
divisive as the majority it replaced.
For a slate that has few proven leaders, it may be a very
difficult task.