Recently, Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) council passed a motion ending the ban on working with the Canadian Blood Services (CBS) in CUSA spaces, previously held due to the CBS policies which unfairly discriminate against men who have sex with men. The motion passed with overwhelming support on council, and alarmingly little debate.
However, what I find most outrageous is the fact that such a controversial motion, regarding an equally controversial issue, was pushed through council at a time when the vast majority of students are not able to voice their opinions on the matter.
Though I disagree with them, I do respect the opinions held by those CUSA councillors who voted in favour of lifting the ban. I understand the important role CBS plays. The work they do saves lives. That being said, for years CBS was still able to hold blood drives on Carleton’s campus without working in CUSA spaces.
While CBS has taken small steps towards reducing some of the discrimination in its policies, it has been nowhere near enough.
I’m of the belief that a student association which claims to stand up for its gay and bisexual members should not be working alongside an organization with discriminatory policies which only fuel illogical anti-gay stigma. It’s called “walking the walk,” rather than simply paying lip-service to the notion of standing up for gay and bisexual men.
If the councillors supporting this motion truly believed this was in the best interest of students, they would be putting it forward at a time when students, especially those in Carleton’s GLBTQ community, were able to voice their concerns over it. Instead, this motion was forced through in the summer, when students are either unable to voice their concerns, or completely unaware of what’s going on in CUSA at all.
Some may think there was no malicious intent in putting this motion forward during the summer. However, CUSA has done little to make me believe they would not intentionally hinder debate.
This past May, the Charlatan broke a story revealing an online ‘caucus group,’ in which voting instructions were given out to councillors associated with A Better Carleton. This was a means of forcing through motions without regard for the opinions of opposing councillors.
During another controversial vote at council in December 2013, a number of councillors handed out screenshots, allegedly from the same caucus group that revealed the date of the council meeting had been intentionally set late in the semester, when students are busier.
Clearly, the current CUSA executive has a track record of pushing their agenda forward whilst intentionally dodging as much scrutiny and debate as possible. It isn’t much of a stretch, then, to believe that the recent motion regarding CBS was done in a similar fashion.
This is not only horribly irresponsible and undemocratic, it is just plain cowardly.
If you believe in something, you should stand up for it. But standing up for something also means empowering and respecting the opinions of those who might disagree with you. This applies especially to those in positions of authority.
Using the summer time to push forward controversial motions only worsens the massive disconnect between CUSA and the students they are meant to represent.
It shows utter disrespect for those students in the GLBTQ community who would want their voices heard on the issue.
A better Carleton is one where our student association does everything it can to empower students to get involved, and that cannot be done while they force through motions that might stir up significant debate when students are not present.
I expect my elected representatives to encourage debate, not hinder it.
