Dear Editor:
Contrary to the beliefs of some self-proclaimed student leaders on this campus recently, USG is about far more than one person. The organization goes far beyond the president or even the 58 elected senators. USG is about the approximate 16,000 students who count on their student leaders to work as a team to ensure that their issues are addressed and their voices are heard. Leadership is not about "I"; it is about us and what we are going to do to improve our University.
Student leadership is about standing up for what your constituents believe despite being called "belligerent and childish" by the misinformed media. Leadership is about what you did and not what you "could have easily garnered." Leaders make their lives a continual mission in which adversity cannot hinder because true leaders do not quit. Nor do we thoughtlessly fold to the bureaucracy we call "the administration."
On behalf of the Freedom Party, I would like to thank the Daily Egyptian for supporting our actions this year regarding prayer at graduation, our stance against encroachment, stopping the use of the Student Organization Activity Fee to pay for administrative salaries and supporting more diverse entertainment in Carbondale. Although the Freedom Party has taken a strong stance against any tuition hike above the already approved 5 percent and refuse to homogenize the student body or USG, I conclude this as an area where the Daily Egyptian and the Freedom Party will have to "agree to disagree."
Mary Wallace
sophomore, psychology
618-536-8191
Published on 11/17/05; 12:24:44 PM
