As the school year comes to a close, members of our Editorial Board sound off in a series of blurbs on issues in which they’d like to see progress.
Soglin and Homelessness
If you are to believe Mayor Paul Soglin’s words, residents of Madison are losing control of the city to the rising number of homeless individuals throughout downtown. Mayor Soglin’s laughable, extreme two-page memo laying out how to deal with the “crisis” facing Madison shows his stark misunderstanding of how to handle an increase in poor and homeless individuals. If the mayor wants to solve this problem, bring downtown business leaders, homeless individuals and city leaders to the table and hash out drug counseling and city-run food distribution, instead of limiting how long someone can sit on a bench. Come on, Mayor Soglin, you’re smarter than this.
—Conor Murphy
Walker's Budget
When Gov. Scott Walker released his budget Feb. 2, he put statewide higher education in a bind. The Board of Regents would get its autonomy from the state, but at the price of a $300 million budget cut spread over two years. To add insult to injury, he proposed erasing the Wisconsin Idea, the very cornerstone of education at the University of Wisconsin, for a more workforce-centered mission. Then, he balked on the change, calling it a “drafting error.” Those decisions, coupled with others to shear away money from K-12 education, begs the question of who the governor is trying impress. As budget discussions play out over the summer, it should become clear it’s not the people trying to get educated in his home state.
—Jack Casey
Walker's out-of-state time
For a man who won three gubernatorial elections in four years, Gov. Scott Walker sure loves to leave Wisconsin lately. Between Jan. 1 and April 26, Walker spent 56 out of 115 days outside the state. Despite releasing a contentious biennial budget that will affect the lives of all Wisconsinites, Walker has decided his time is best spent traveling across America and Europe promoting himself as a worthy Republican candidate for president. Walker has forgotten his duty to the people of Wisconsin in favor of political grandstanding, a decision that has, and will continue to have, dire consequences for the people of Wisconsin.
—Cullen Voss
UW's sexual assault policy
Conversation surrounding sexual assaults at UW-Madison used to be background noise to students and faculty alike, hanging over campus like the buzz of traffic on University Avenue. This past academic year, however, that dialogue blared over the city like the Helen C. White steam whistle. But while organizations like PAVE have been proactive in organizing programs to support victims and promoting assault prevention and awareness, other prominent groups have stumbled: Last fall, the Madison Police Department sent out an email with tips to prevent assaults that was virtually victim-blaming, and this spring, a federal investigation was launched into numerous universities’ (including UW-Madison’s) possible mishandlings of sexual assaults. In future academic terms, we have high expectations for universities to provide stronger support for victims, abandon victim-blaming language and be more aggressive in their training for new students in order to extinguish the epidemic of sexual assaults on college campuses.
—Haley Henschel
The Hub and State Street
As the Hub nears completion, it is looking less like its shiny, streamlined preconstruction visual renderings than it is a Witte with a few extra windows. If the Hub 2 ends up being built, Madison will finally have East Campus dorms for young professionals.
I don’t mean to be too critical of the Hub complex itself. Just because luxurious amenities don’t appeal to me doesn’t mean there’s no demand for them. However, making State Street and the downtown area more exclusive, with high-end rent and retail, will only serve to further divide the Madison community along socioeconomic lines.
—Andy Holsteen
Improving Diversity Initiatives
To effectively prepare students for an increasingly diverse country, UW-Madison needs to move beyond discussion and strengthen diversity and inclusion.
In efforts to do just that, shared governance groups brought forward the Diversity Framework.
However, instead of holding more and more vague discussions to receive “input” despite supposedly being in the plan’s implementation process, it is time to see action. This includes a clearer budget and the materialization of proposed new and enhanced programs.
It is concerning that this process began with a different chancellor, chief diversity officer and provost than we currently have, potentially leaving gaps in ideologies and priorities. Although they are giving the same pro-diversity rhetoric, there does not appear to be the same level of attention and expertise.
No, the state Legislature’s budget cuts are not an acceptable excuse for the administration’s lackadaisical approach.
Until we stop hearing people shout the n-word at students of color on the street and referring to groups of “Asians” as if they’re one collective horde, students are not learning how to live in a diverse country.
—Jonah Beleckis
Union coffee
“Whoa, just another lonely night/ Are you willing to sacrifice your life?” Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon roars these words in the opening lines of Kanye West’s “Monster.” These lyrics can be likened to our Editorial Board members’ experiences with Union coffee: Often desperately consumed in our most desolate, vulnerable states—in the midst of a lengthy study session or all-nighter—drinking Union coffee forces one to choose between procuring a caffeinated buzz and betraying their taste buds/dignity. I, for one, am not entirely convinced it’s actually coffee grounds in there—maybe a used napkin from Coffeebytes’ dumpster mixed with a stale dog turd, plus a pinch of dirt and/or vomit scraped from the floor of a Witte bathroom? Seriously, Wisconsin Unions, I used to work at Pizza Hut and THEIR coffee is better than yours. For the sake of future Badgers, we implore you to change your java formula.
—Haley Henschel
Why 'Black Lives Matter'
The above statement should trigger you to understand why clarification is even necessary. These protests symbolize a pivotal moment in the history of our campus—let alone our country in a global context—yet the university has barely recognized these efforts at all, despite the long history of UW-Madison’s protesting and social awareness during times like Vietnam or Libya. This is an ongoing saga chronicling the experiences of black and brown bodies with narratives that our oppressive society will take every conceivable means of silencing.
Our neighbors, the cops that walk among us, the citizens you may never know… have the potential to end one of our lives and walk free.
How can a Badger like you get involved? Take the time to educate yourself on the issues. Interface with community and campus organizations dedicated to constructive dialoguing and programming around the movement. Furthermore, do not limit your involvement to this moment. The efforts on this campus are neither the beginning nor the end of this struggle.
No matter your alignment on the political spectrum, respect the fact that black and brown human beings—rich, middle-class, poor, straight, queer, transgendered, people with mental wellness challenges, people with disabilities, people with degrees from this very university and a myriad of others I haven’t named—are living in danger of dying if they have not been exterminated already.
And that is unacceptable.
—Michael Penn II
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