The Student Senate chamber was overflowing last night as protesters organized by the “Rally Against Talley” Facebook group appeared before student senators to express their discontent.
The group, which announced its intent a week ago, packed the senate chambers and the adjacent lounge with students disgruntled by the Senate’s support of the Talley fee increase.
The Senate approved Resolution 22 last Tuesday which formally stated the body’s recommendation for fee increases. Senators said they approved the Student Center Renovation fee increase based on three criteria, but protesters argued the 61.6 percent of students who voted against the increase represented a majority.
Vidya Sankar, a sophomore in biochemistry and organizer of the protest, said the purpose of appearing before the Senate was to allow students to express their outrage and discontent with the Student Government and the Talley fee process.
“We are here to get student voices heard,” Sankar said. “We are trying to gain public exposure to student concerns. Even off-campus media was here; this is a huge accomplishment.”
Sankar said this protest should clearly show how the Senate contradicted the student body’s will and how it skewed the votes to advance the Talley project.
Sen. Sam Daughtry said the protest was a result of the Senate not looking after the students, not listening to voters, and misinterpreting the vote.
“This was because of miscommunication and misunderstanding between students and the Senate,” he said. “And it shows students do care.”
Daughtry said while the student-led protest didn’t fall on deaf ears the Senate no longer had any input on the fee.
“Change will depend on how the students continue this protest. At this point, the recommendation can’t be revised; it is out of the Senate’s hands,” Daughtry said.
Nonetheless, many students stepped forward to speak and the Senate extended the time period for open commentary from 15 minutes to 30 minutes to accommodate.
Tucker Biningay, a senior in landscape architecture, said he felt SG did not properly consider student votes.
“Students depend on Student Government to represent [them] to the administration,” he said. “If you ask students to vote and they turn out in unprecedented numbers, you have to listen to them.”
Technical education junior Daniel Marcus said senators improperly extrapolated the results of a direct student vote and were not doing the jobs they were elected to do.
Sen. Morgan Donnelly said this kind of student response would cause the Senate to weigh over student votes a lot more.
“This shows a lot of student leadership and that students recognize their power,” Donnelly said. “Students wanted to make sure their voice was heard. Student Government is trying to connect more with students and improve communication.”
Ramie Elawar, a sophomore in biological engineering and a member of the protest, said he felt the issue will eventually solve itself if students are this unhappy.
“We were asked our opinion by the Senate but then the Senate decided in the opposite,” he said. “We are a group angry with the Senate.”
“Senators will know students are unhappy with them and in the end the students give them power,” Elawar said. “This will definitely reflect in the next election.”
This is not the last confrontation to be had on this issue. The Senate plans to have an open forum next Wednesday to allow students to express their opinions more freely. Students with the “Rally Against Talley” group have planned another protest at Holladay Hall the same day.
