Yoga. Pokemon Go. Smoothies. The weather. An event involving a giant mechanical spider and dragon. What do all these things have in common? They’ve all appeared on the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) Facebook page within the last month.
While there is perhaps no major problem with posting about yoga three times and only posting about CUSA budget consultations once, there is, however, a very concerning problem with an association that represents around 24,000 students and yet very rarely shows any support for social justice issues that affect a large majority of us.
In comparison, the Graduate Students’ Association (GSA) has posted about Capital Pride student consultations, international students’ rights, Carleton’s Sexual Violence policy debate, Black Lives Matter, and multiple statements of solidarity also within this same month. The Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO) organized an entire vigil for the victims of the Pulse Orlando massacre. Where was CUSA amidst all this?
Our student union has been making headlines over the past year for a ridiculously embarrassing ‘I’m gunna vote’ video, and a nearly six-month elections controversy followed by a financially draining legal battle. We have no shortage of internal politics going on. Many students won’t hesitate to tell you about flawed hiring processes, at least one-third of CUSA council can point out a whole range of bylaw inconsistencies, and you can always find people on campus complaining about the divisive nature of our campus politics.
This is not to say that no part of CUSA gets involved with social justice. The Womyn’s Centre, Gender and Sexuality Resource Centre, and Aboriginal Service Centre in particular have held some really great events that tackle a variety of social justice issues, such as racism, queer/transphobia, colonialism, and Islamophobia, amongst others. However the main body of CUSA, not just individual service centres, needs to have a voice and show some action in these matters.
CUSA needs to start channeling their expertise in internal issues into getting involved with external issues, and I don’t mean just telling us to go vote. I mean getting involved in vigils and rallies when members of our student body have lost members of their community. I mean putting out statements of solidarity and support with groups like Black Lives Matter. I mean finding the time to hold tuition campaigns, and really engaging with students to not only ‘raise awareness’, but to also show support and advocate in issues that we care about.
The CUSA constitution names ‘Diversity’ as one of its core values, meaning they will “strive to facilitate equitable representation of the perspectives of our members both on campus and in the community.” Yes, student life is an important part of the university experience, and I love reading articles about Pokemon Go, but it’s time for our students’ association to commit to representing students from all backgrounds and experiences. That would be my Carleton.
