In the March 27 article Living wage needed before expensive union renovation,\ the author reiterates the charge of Charles Van Hise, but clearly misunderstands its true meaning. There is little coincidence that the Wisconsin Idea was born in 1904, three years before the Wisconsin Union was founded.
A sad state has fallen for those working towards equal access in education. Recently, the Student Labor Action Coalition has disapproved of a renovation planned for the Wisconsin Union. Its hope is to provide a living wage to people who honestly need it by threatening the renovation efforts. While this is a noble goal, and one that I agree with, there is a small problem with its methodology. The Wisconsin Union is a student association and is powerless to say what benefits LTEs receive.
So, as a former LTE and economically disadvantaged student of color, I am wondering why SLAC would rather oppose a union renovation rather than focus on providing advocacy for those who need it. There is so much that could be done to help those in need and I can only conclude that SLAC has either not done its research, or this is a sad publicity stunt.
Further, the opposition to the Union renovation would halt needed improvements to make the union facilities compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Approval of the referendum could reduce taxpayer's economic burden, allow greater support by means of alumni donations and give students control over our own union restructuring. The Wisconsin Union makes our university better and increases the value of our education and Van Hise understood this.
Rodolfo Alaniz
UW- Madison Senior
Genetics\
