In a state government forum hosted by the College Democrats of Madison, students engaged in dialogue with state lawmakers on the level of student involvement in politics Monday night at Grainger Hall.
Political leaders at the event included state Reps. Terese Berceau, D-Madison, Gary Hebl, D-Sun Prairie, Sondy Pope-Roberts, D-Middleton, Joe Parisi, D-Madison and Mark Pocan, D-Madison, and state Sen. Mark Miller, D-Monona. Moderating the forum was Professor Dennis Dresang of the La Follette School of Public Policy.
The legislators asked the students at the forum how they felt about student involvement in politics. One student answered that some don't care, and some don't know what is going on.
Parisi said student involvement is important during times like these when stakes are high,"" referring to issues like health care and college tuition.
""The information is out there, the availability to get involved is out there, we all have to take responsibility to save what we have,"" Parisi said.
Dresang said political leaders need to promote student involvement by telling students why they should get involved and informing them about the important issues.
""Persuade somebody to get involved, rather than say 'get involved,'"" Dresang stated.
Both students and political leaders said during the Vietnam War there was more student involvement in politics due to the draft. But today, as the panel said, often only the volunteer soldiers and their families are affected.
""The administration and our government has done a very good job at insolating the rest of us from it, and in many ways that prevents us from becoming very active,"" said College Democrats of Madison Chair Oliver Kiefer.
Kiefer said campus involvement is nothing like it was during the Vietnam War, but the College Democrats are trying to increase the current level of involvement.
According to Pope-Roberts, the media is also to blame since the Vietnam War was covered much more than the Iraq war.
UW-Madison student Justin Rabbach said there is a need to bridge the gap between Republicans and Democrats, and said he consistently hears arguments and with no comprises between the two groups.
Pocan said the dialogue between Republicans and Democrats has gotten better, adding that he thinks the media covers dramatic stories rather than stories about compromise.
Rabbach said there is a ""huge"" number of students in the middle of the two ideological groups, and students feel like they have choose between the two. The polarization discourages students from being politically active, according to Rabbach.
