Dear President Bennet:
In the past few days, I witnessed actions by my fellow students that have challenged my ideas on student activism and responsibility. You probably would not get to read this letter given your busy schedule, but I feel that if I “want my voice heard,” it is my responsibility to make an effort and speak up.
First of all, I would like to say that I do not support all of the actions of the student protesters. I find some of their actions disrespectful and sometimes down-right rude. I was appalled when I saw you being cursed at by student protesters as you left your office hours last Tuesday. This afternoon in the community forum, I think their demand to conduct the “dialogue” on “student terms” (even if the terms were already decided in a previous meeting) was unfair. No university in the Philippines would tolerate such gross disrespect of persons, especially those of authority.
However, this does not mean that I do not share their concerns. I believe that student opinion should be considered in the decision-making process. I understand that the WSA is the recognized voice of the students in these committees, but I feel that most WSA resolutions addressing these issues are not given the weight they deserve.
That being said, I feel that I cannot fully associate myself with the binary classification of players in this conflict. Am I pro-student or pro-administration? I believe this question is unfair and that the binary distinction is too simplistic for this situation.
There is a second group of students, who I shall call the non-activists. We are students who are concerned about student voice on campus but still believe in dialogue as the best solution. We are those who are still willing to try working with the administration and not just writing list after list of unfeasible demands. We are those who want to listen to what you have to say and be heard at the same time.
Before this week, I never really cared about the controversial issues on campus. I enjoyed reading the chalked announcements on the sidewalk, but I was content in using the copy machine in the WSA. I am a minority student (not even an American citizen), but diversity was not a big concern. Before I came to Wesleyan or to the US for that matter, I already accepted the fact that I will be darker than most people on campus.
But all that has changed with this week’s events. I cannot let a group of angst-filled student activists take my voice from me to make their voices louder.
Please be open to dialogue, because I know most of us are.
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