Constitution Coverage

The Herald does a good job outlining the arguments of the anti-Constitution coalition:

http://badgerherald.com/news/2009/01/22/campus_groups_critic.php#add

The Cardinal is predictably clueless and continues to give only one side of the story. (It is interesting to note the (stated) intensity that the pro-Constitution forces intend to put behind the campaign. I doubt it will amount to much, however. Reporters should also closely monitor the student seg fee money that ASM intends to spend on "education" efforts around the Constitution. Are we really to believe that this won't have a pro-Constitution bias?)

http://dailycardinal.com/article/21773


Two responses to what appear to be the talking points of the do-nothings and conservatives who support the Constitution:

1)THE ANT-CONSTITUTION COALITION IS COMPRISED OF A SMALL NUMBER OF IDEOLOGICALLY-DRIVEN STUDENTS AND FAR LEFT ORGANIZATIONS.

Thus far, eight of the most active student groups (including 3 GSSFs) on campus comprise the coalition. We also have members of other groups like MEChA, MCSC, the CDems and other large organizations involved. As groups meet up once again with the new semester, their organizations will be able to take official stances on the Constitution. We expect to have an almost completely united progressive front against it.

Many non-political groups - PAVE, Sex Out Loud, among many others - have also expressed concern about the new document, some of their members even on record in the press. We are confident that many (if not most) of the large groups on campus (i.e. GSSFs and a few others) will endorse the campaign for student democracy.

While the non-progressive minority would love to believe that our numbers are small, the truth is that they have no substance to back up this claim. Our coalition has a distinct advantage, in that our members live in the world of activist and non-activist large student groups on campus, not the incredibly small and enclosed world of ASM leadership.

The truth is that it is the pro-Constitution coalition that has precisely this shortcoming. As someone who has been to multiple Student Council meetings discussing the Constitution, I can verify that no more than a half dozen of their members really know anything about the Constitution. I can think of maybe four or five people who are really prepared to throw down in defense of their prized document, and how effective they will be is not clear.

In sum, props to the Herald for giving legitimate and balanced coverage on this issue.

2) THE ANTI-CONSTITUTION COALITION IS A REACTIONARY FORCE INTENT ON BLOCKING EFFORTS TOWARD REFORM IN ASM.

Probably the most important advantage of the pro-Constitution side is their exploitation of the obvious fact that ASM, in large part at least, is a failed organization. In this context, their presentation of the new document as the culmination of efforts toward "reform" intuitively sounds appealing.

Our side rejects that the notion that any old "reform" will do. We need real reform, not faux reform. Not only does the new Constitution miss the point of what currently ails ASM - it doesn't serve as a proactive body to fight on behalf of student interests - it also concentrates power in what is a textbook undemocratic move. (Why not just elect a dictator?)

Across the United States, the structure of student governments (precisely what the Constitutional Committee is so concerned with) markedly differ, though the same problems of ineffectiveness and lack of student involvement are consistent everywhere. Contrast this with student governments in Mexico, Canada and Europe: They are powerful, proactive organizations that are able to effectively fight for student interests because they are successful in mobilizing students. In Montreal in 2006, for example, when the government proposed massive increases in tuition (though still a pittance compared to U.S tuition), student governments succeeded in organizing a multi-day strike and ultimately won on the issue.

Obviously, the United States - well-known for its lack of leftist energy - is a different country with different social dynamics. This doesn't mean that ASM should just give up on mobilizing students, nor does it change the fact that the only way we will win on the issues is through pressure-backed activism, however difficult it is to create and sustain.

Our efforts toward making ASM a legitimate representative body will not end on February 18, regardless of the result. Our coalition is a large and diverse group of people and organizations committed to fighting for progressive student government, an effort which will continue on toward the April elections and beyond.

Finally, it's important to note that members of our coalition, Chynna Haas in particular, did their best to work with the Constitutional Committee and Student Council to reach an appropriate compromise. As I'm sure Chynna will attest, she and her cohort were treated rudely during the proceedings, including by the leadership of the Constitutional Committee. The entire process had a facade of encouraging student involvement, but the empirical evidence (What changes were really made in response to student feedback?) proves quite the contrary.

Why vote no on ASM's proposed constitution?

The problems with the new Constitution can be divided into two categories:

1) FUNDING FOR STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS WILL BECOME JEOPARDIZED.

- One of the proposed changes will give the new President the power to veto all budgets. An override of the veto requires the support of 3/4 of the Student Council, to be renamed Student Senate. Viewpoint neutrality will become much easier to violate, and groups which have had funding for years could be cut off from seg fees due to the whims or opinions of a single individual.

- A two-month notification to groups of changes in the financial code was removed from the Constitution in one of many last-minute, insider changes. This leaves groups, particularly GSSF, subjected to any hastily implemented changes by the SSFC (to be renamed Appropriations Committee), Student Senate or the President.

- Members of the Student Council have stated that certain protections should be placed in the bylaws, instead of the Constitution. But changes to the bylaws can only occur after the constitution vote, by which time any leverage we have with ASM will have vanished. The Constitutional Committee had the opportunity to protect student groups and they didn't.

2) THE MONUMENTAL POWER OF THE NEW EXECUTIVE POSITION PRESENTS A MAJOR THREAT TO STUDENT INTERESTS, EMPOWERMENT AND DEMOCRACY. The powers embedded in his/her authority include:

- A veto over all legislation and bylaws requring, respectively, a 2/3 and 3/4 override from the Senate.

- Appointments of the positions in the new Cabinet, Finance Committee, Student Judiciary and the chair and vice-chair of the Student Elections Commission.

- The Executive Order Power, an "emergency" provision which can be enacted at any time give the president de facto dictatorial powers over the entire ASM until the Senate chooses to revoke it (the body only meets every other week), or up to a six-week period.

- As stated above, veto power over all budgets, requiring a 3/4 override from the Senate.

- A 2/3 impeachment requirement for the executive position. Accounting for the inevitable absences in the Senate, this means the executive could commit illegal acts, like refusing to implement legislation he/she dislikes, so long as about 8 Senators show up to side with him/her.

- A close connection to the administration that is likely to leave him/her subservient to their interests before those of the student body.


In this context, the "vote no" coalition is currently asking for all UW student organizations to give their endorsement in opposition to the new constitution. Please contact one of the adminstrators of this group if your group is interested in sponsoring.

We plan to have many more endorsements with the beginning of the next semester as groups meet up once again. For now, the following RSOs have signed on:

Campus Women's Center
Student Progressive Dane
Working-Class Student Union
Student Tenant Union
Student-Labor Action Coalition
International Socialist Organization
Campus Antiwar Network
Action for Environmental Justice