Most every UCSD student ‘mdash; at least, most every UCSD student who doesn’t relegate himself to the somber sort of existence that demands unwavering contact with his bio textbook ‘mdash; knows that the A.S. Council has introduced some kind of referendum to provide necessary funding for ‘hellip; well, something. Something that’s going to cost us.
What generally seems less clear to students is exactly how much lighter they can expect their wallets to be should the referendum pass, or what exactly is at stake. Despite inarguably noble efforts to publicize the referendum ‘mdash; the neutral campaign alone has spent $1,800 (around the same cost as a general A.S. election) to get out the vote ‘mdash; its implications appear to elude the average student. All that’s generally known is that a vocal faction of the A.S. Council really, really wants us to vote yes, as evidenced by its constant presence on Library Walk and its pleas for us to save Sun God.
Realistically, though, just how many students are both unoccupied and considerate enough to slow their pace en route to Panda Express, remove their sunglasses and ask, a sparkle of curiosity lighting their gaze, ‘Goodness! Would you folks mind tellin’ me a little more about this referendum you’re all so worked up over?’
Frank Carroll, neutral campaign manager for the referendum, cites promotional flyers, bookmarks and banners ‘mdash; all present on Library Walk ‘mdash; as the main forms of advertisement for the campaign. Carroll argues that common symbols like the Sun God, the Triton and Bear Garden characters used on the flyers will help students connect with this paraphernalia.
But really, how effective can the mass flyer-printing (or bookmark-printing, for that matter) be when virtually every organization along Library Walk uses exactly the same tactic? The eventual impact of this campaign isn’t very clear when communicated through promotional tactics used by everyone else ‘mdash; which wouldn’t matter in the slightest if this promotion were for another InterVarsity pizza party or sorority soiree. But it isn’t. Occupying the same-old standby promotional strategies undercuts the reality of cause. The passage of this referendum is critically important to the current student body and those to come.
What the A.S. Council must communicate to the students’ is the seriousness of the issue at hand. A.S. Vice President of External Affairs Lisa Chen said that at present, there’s around a $30,000 reserve to fill Spring Quarter’s student-organization allocations. In Spring 2006, A.S. Council received $330,000 worth of funding requests, and was only able to provide around $132,000. Which would mean that instead of being able to meet 40 percent of requests lik last year, it can currently meet around 9 percent.
Chen said that no matter the outcome of the referendum, students will see immediate consequences. The thing is, students need to see those effects beforehand, or they’re not going to wake up until it’s too late. We’re young, distracted and far too apathetic to respond to all but the most extreme threats to our daily lives. Which is why a flyer and a banner just plain don’t cut it ‘mdash; we’ve seen it before, we’ll see it again. What’s needed is a more dramatic, eye-catching promotion. Really, why not cover the sun god in a body bag, or make it a headstone with the inscription ‘R.I.P. Sun God: 1983-2008’?
Chen said that the A.S. Council wanted to steer clear of
scare tactics, in the spirit of honesty. But while it may be admirable to present students with only the reality of the situation, without making much use of exaggeration, printing a bunch of bookmarks and flyers can’t and won’t elicit the strong reaction that the referendum relies on, because the foremost concern is simply to get people to vote. The last A.S. election failed to recruit even 20 percent of the student body to cast a vote (the necessary percentage in order for any change to take effect), and if this pattern repeats, all efforts to bring in the vote would once again be for naught.
Most importantly, the council should do all it can to ensure students know why the referendum’s passage is so important. Most of us still don’t realize the gravity of what we’re (hopefully) voting on ‘mdash; or what the referendum’s failure will’ mean for the rest of our college experience.
Readers can contact Trevor Cox at [email protected].