Law student wrong in MCSC accusations
Joe Moschella, a UW-Madison law student who said, \While the MCSC has a noble cause ... [to fund the group fully] is essentially pouring money down a rat hole that has no internal structure,"" is wrong both in fact and in his heart if he truly believes what he said at the MCSC budget hearing before the SSFC Wednesday night.
His error in fact is to claim that the MCSC has ""zero accountability."" The MCSC faces the scrutiny of SSFC every year, the same ""accountability"" that all other funded student organizations face. The MCSC must account for the funds it was given the year before to provide services and must justify its current budget request to SSFC's satisfaction.
Correcting this error of fact is simple, but correcting the error in Mr. Moschella's heart that would allow him to compare his fellow and sister students in the MCSC to the inhabitants of a ""rat hole"" is another story altogether. When I read what Mr. Moschella said, I felt like I had been kicked in the gut and, in fact, I read it over several times, hoping in vain that I had misread his words. If he was quoted accurately, his opinion of the students in the MCSC reflects the kind of despicable racism that students of color here face every day and demonstrates an attitude of absolute privilege that some white students express, seemingly without a second thought.
I hope Mr. Moschella will search his heart and find the place that will compel him to apologize to the entire UW-Madison community.
Campus climate issues are critical to all students' success, and Mr. Moschella, in my opinion, has thrown a load of poison into the climate that we all share.
MCSC's Halloween campaign unnecessary
I, as a minority, think the Multicultural Student Coalition has a rightful place because racial and cultural issues badly need to be discussed. MCSC has laid out quite an elaborate proposal with many helpful plans in mind for improving the situation here on campus. I think that some of its budget could be used in better ways. For example, the Halloween costume campaign. Couldn't the money going to fund this project be better used, for example, in tutoring, recruitment programs or campaigning for more minority scholarships instead of studying people's racist tendencies? These people usually know they're being racist. Do we, as a campus, need to call more attention to their attitudes by waging a campaign? I feel that this campaign isn't a terrible idea, just not one that I want to fund. There are worse types of racism out there, like hate crime. In spring 2001, when I was in Spain, I dealt with being kicked, having vomit thrown on my legs, having my coat and finger slashed open with a knife and being chased down city blocks trying to avoid pursuers, for example. Many hate crimes occur here on campus. I'm arguing that the members of MCSC think a little harder about what the purposes of this funding are. Not all students of color hate Halloween. They, along with other students, may care about issues a little more important than costumes.
Alum encourages loud support for Badgers
As a grad prohibited from attending by distance, I hope you will all go to Saturday's game with the old Badger attitude: Take No Prisoners. Camp Randall has become complacent of late, maybe sated on too many victories. Those victories were, in many cases, made possible because of the cooperation of a football-savvy Camp Randall crowd. Deafening noise while the other team is in the huddle, constant support for the Good Guys'you know all the necessaries. Sporting News has named Camp Randall the No. 1 place in the United States for team support. Coach Alvarez and many habitual ticket-holders feel that honor is not merited this year. Saturday allows you the chance to prove the honor legitimate. We will be watching and screaming at home. I trust you will recapture the Badger attitude this weekend as well. As your Marching Band says, ""Eat a Rock and On Wis!"" You have to be tough too! Let the Spartans have it!
