Organizers of a rally Thursday before a meeting of the Associated Students of Madison Student Council said they are disappointed the council did not approve budgets for five student organizations.
\It just really proved to me that there is not democracy in the council,"" Pabitra Benjamin, a UW-Madison junior who helped organize the rally, said.
The budgets of student organizations funded by segregated fees were presented to the ASM Student Council for approval Thursday after being approved by the Student Services Finance Committee. Budgets were approved for all organizations except the Multicultural Student Coalition, Diversity Education Specialists, the Asian Pacific American Council, Safe Arrival for Everyone Nighttime Services and Wunk Sheek.
The budgets of organizations not approved will now go before a conference committee composed of ASM Chair Bryan Gadow, three appointees from Student Council, SSFC Chair Roman Patzner and three appointees from SSFC, according to Patzner.
""What we're trying to do is find budgets that will meet the needs of both council and SSFC,"" Patzner said.
Conference committee proposals will then have to be approved by SSFC and Student Council.
Rally organizer Jessy Tolkan, a UW-Madison senior, said she was disappointed Student Council representatives were not impacted by the large student presence at the meeting.
""I was upset to see that a majority of the members on the ASM council did not listen and did not take to heart the very emotional, important and kind of on message comments that students had to offer at the meeting,"" she said.
Despite their disappointment, Benjamin and Tolkan said they were pleased with the number of students who attended the rally and spoke at the meeting's open forum.
""It was probably one of the greatest examples of student involvement and student empowerment that I have ever seen,"" Tolkan said.
